Let the Game Begin
by Starcrystal8
Summary: When Blaine Anderson is picked for the 48th Hunger Games, he hopes to win to make it back home to his brother and friends. He never expected to deal with love. He must choose between winning and love. Klaine and Anderson brothers! Rated for violence
1. Chapter 1

**I have had this story idea in my head for weeks; I have finally been able to start writing it! This is mainly a Klaine story, but I will try to have as many other pairings as possible. This is in Blaine's POV, but chances are it will have some Cooper later on, and he will not be based on Big Brother that much, actually he probably won't be like how he is in Big Brother at all. Chances are that Kurt will have a couple chapters to himself too. Enough with my rambling, on to chapter 1!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Hunger Games.**

I wake up in fear. Today is the day, the reaping. I am so scared that I will be picked as tribute; I was shaking. I just hoped that I will be spared for one more year.

I live in District 11, or the agriculture district. My family is poor, but we aren't as bad as some of the other groups. Many families starve to death here. Many Peacekeepers are very strict and punishments are harsh. We survive off the little bit of money my parents and Cooper make from working in the fields, and the tesserae I have taken so we could get more money. I was 16 years old, so my name is in the bowl 25 times. The odds are not in my favor of not getting picked today.

I grabbed my guitar which was sitting in the corner in my room. I had found that guitar in the fields one day, almost broken beyond repair. Thankfully Cooper is very good at building things, so I had gone to him after I had found it, and begged him to fix it as soon as he could. We had both worked for days to try to fix it with what we had, since we couldn't spend any money on it. This guitar is very special to me, and I need the music to calm me down on a day as nerve-wracking as today. I begin to strum a couple chords, not really noticing or caring what I was playing until I recognized what I was playing. I start to sing along to the music.

_I turn the music up_

_I got my records on_

_I shut the world outside_

_Until the lights come on_

_Maybe the streets alight_

_Maybe the trees are gone_

_I feel my heart start beating_

_To my favorite song_

_And all the kids they dance_

_All the kids all night_

_Until Monday morning feels_

_Another life_

_I turn the music up _

_I'm on a roll this time_

_And heaven is in sight._

I stop abruptly, and look up. Standing in my doorway is my brother Cooper, who is looking unsurprised yet impressed at me. I look down slightly.

"Hey, Blainers, it's time to get ready for the reaping" he said gently. I wince. I just want to be frozen in the music forever instead of having to face my fears of being reaped. Now the fateful moment was looming even closer than before, and I could do nothing to stop it.

"Blaine, don't worry, there really isn't much of a chance that you will be reaped, the odds are against it" Cooper murmurs to me quietly, with a knowing look on his face. Well, I guess he would understand, given that he went through this too, I had been 12 when it was his last year for the reaping, he had been terrified. His name had been in the bowl 35 times, and the chances of him being picked had been huge. I had comforted him before the reaping too, even though I didn't completely understand what had been happening. "I know that your name is in the bowl a lot of times, but there are a lot of boys in District 11, you still have a chance. Just have courage that you will make it, and if you are called, continue having courage. You are strong, much stronger than I am, or ever will be. You can make it.

"Thanks" I whisper back to Cooper. I was still scared, but I can hope that I would make it. There was still a chance that I will be spared.

I slip into my blue blazer and black slacks and tied my tie around my neck. My mother helped me tame my impossible hair down with water and then we leave to start the long walk. It is time for the reaping. I hope so badly that I won't get picked.

We begin our walk to the square. I'm trying with all my might not to shake in fear; I want to look strong in case if I was picked. Cooper's hand is on my shoulder, helping me keep strong during the long walk to the square. The one bad thing about District 11 for the reapings is the how far away our home is from the square. It gives me more time to dwell on what could happen. Cooper had his face clear of all emotion thankfully. I knew

he was doing this for my sake, and I was so happy to have such an amazing brother. My father's face was also emotionless, but I didn't believe that he really cared that much. He had never really raised me that much when I had been younger, Cooper had. Father had been especially disapproving when I had told him that I was gay. It is like he didn't really care about any of us, especially me. I couldn't see my mother's face, but I didn't want to. She always becomes very emotional during reapings, and the last thing I want to see is someone breaking down when I'm about to completely freak out.

We finally arrive at the square. I move to separate myself from my family when Cooper grabs my arm and drags me over to a less crowded part.

"Remember, courage Blaine" Cooper says. I nod and lift my head up. He leads me back to the square, and I go to the table to check in. The Peacekeeper imprints my thumbprint where my name is and directs me to the 16 year old boy section is. I walk over there and squeeze inside. Next to me is my friend Wes, from school.

"Hey Blaine, may the odds be _ever _in your favor" Wes says dramatically. I laugh and punch him gently on the arm. He pulls out an old gavel that he keeps on him at all times and pretends to hit me with it.

"Wes, if you become tribute, I bet you will win with your gavel, nothing else" I say.

"Hey!" Wes exclaims. I grin and pretend to duck. David comes right next to me and groans.

"I hate to break it up, but they're starting" David says.

"Good luck" I say. "Nobody volunteer if any of us get picked"

"Deal" the other two say.

We all turn to the raised stage in the square. On the square is a podium and two glass bowls. One is tinted blue, and one pink. I look at the blue bowl in fear; there are 25 slips with my name in that horrendous bowl.

The mayor, an old man that was as strict as his Peacekeepers begins the usual lecture on the history of Panem. I tune out like usual, it's so boring! It doesn't help that the mayor is saying this in such a monotonous voice. Wes taps David and me on the shoulders and mimics the mayor. David and I both bend over in laughter, Wes is mimicking him perfectly. David soon taps both of us again and points his head to the mayor. We start to listen and we realize that his boring speech is finally coming to a close. We mold our faces back into an emotional mask and pay close attention. This was the moment.

Our escort Emma Pillsbury comes out looking excited. She looks sane compared to most Capitol people, but her clothes are very fancy and her hair is so brightly orange that I'm sure it has a bit of dye in it.

"Welcome to the 48th Hunger Games reaping! May the odds be _ever _in your favor" she squeals in the typical Capitol accent. All three of us struggle to keep straight faces. There is a reason why everyone loves to mimic the Capitol accent when we can, it sounds so stupid!

"Ladies first, like usual" She says as she walks to the pink bowl. She reaches inside and fishes around for a second. The tenseness throughout the crowd is so thick. It seems like a dense fog of worry has fallen onto District 11. She feels around for a couple seconds until she grabs a name.

"Mercedes Jones!"

No! My stomach ties into an even tighter knot than before. I know Mercedes; she is the nicest diva I have ever met. We have been best friends for years, she has helped my through the bullying that went through the halls. The odds are not in my favor right now.

Mercedes walks up with a tremble everyone can see she is trying with all of her might to control. Her face is scared, but she is trying to be strong.

"Now it's the boys turn!" Emma exclaims happily. She moves over to the blue bowl. I feel terrified. I hope the boy who's picked is someone I don't know, or someone that I won't feel too sad if they are tribute.

Emma begins to search the bowl with her hand for a couple seconds, mixing the names up. I hold my breath in terror. She picks up the paper and begins to unfold it.

"Blaine Anderson!"

**Please review! **

**The song is Every Teardrop is a Waterfall by Coldplay. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you FerbulousGirl and LunaBeth203 for the amazing reviews! They mean so much to me! I hope you like this chapter as much as the other one! This is still in Blaine's POV; I have decided to change it to Kurt soon, and eventually Cooper once the games actually start. Now for Chapter 2!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or the Hunger Games.**

I am numb with terror. That was my name being called. I can't move at all, I feel like a post nailed into place. I hear dimly Wes and David trying to cry quietly, but not succeeding.

"Well come on Blaine!" Emma yells from the stage. "We don't have all day!"

Instantly my limbs unfreeze. I move numbly, not really noticing what I'm doing. I glance back briefly at a screen and quickly mold my face into an emotionless mask, the mask I'm so used to using all of the time. I walk to Emma without realizing it. I look out to my district. I see Wes attempting to get up and volunteer. I give a small shake of my head to tell him not too.

"Give a round of applause to your tributes of District 11: Mercedes Jones and Blaine Anderson!" Emma cheers excitedly.

The citizens of District 11 however, do not clap. They stay silent. It's not surprising; we usually don't clap for any tributes, and if we do, it's a forced clap that last for a couple seconds. This shows our dislike for the Hunger Games, how wrong it is. Both Mercedes and I sneak a glance at Emma. She is flabbergasted. I guess she expected District 11 to have a bit of cheer in them. District 12 is the more well-known district for not clapping in the Capitol. District 11 is expected to clap. Emma has not been to 11 before, I wouldn't have known, I don't usually pay attention to the different escorts before. I just see how messed up they look.

After a bit, the mayor clears his throat and begins the long treaty of treason. I ignore it like usual and look out to the crowd. I see that all of my friends have bunched together where I once stood; waiting to find out who would be the tribute, praying it wouldn't be me. Mercedes attempts, and succeeds to catch my eye. I look back at her, and nod quickly. She nods back with a flash of a sad face flying across her face. I almost tear up and go back to looking at the crowd of people. This was a complete mistake, because the first face I identify this time is Cooper. He is sobbing into our mother's shoulder. I am now struggling very hard not to cry. Cooper looks up and notices me looking at him. He attempts to control himself and flashes a quick smile to me. Somehow, this didn't help me not cry. It only made it worse. I stopped looking at Cooper and I just stare at a faraway field in the distance until the mayor wraps of his speech. He motions for Mercedes and me to shake hands. We grab each other's hands quickly and shake a couple times. We give each other a warm smile and turn back to the audience, still holding hands.

Someone from the audience gives a quick whistle to us. I suspect Jeff. A few people join in, giving a whistle to us. Soon everyone is whistling to the two of us. I am overwhelmed with the love our district is sending us. I have to look down and let out a silent sob, I can't hold it in anymore. Mercedes does the same. District 11 hasn't done this to any tributes before. It is our way of saying that we love the person, and we don't want to say goodbye.

A few Peacekeepers march us into the Justice Building. I am moved to a different room from Mercedes, and they guard the door.

The first people to come in are my family, with Cooper in the lead. Cooper wastes no time pulling me into a big hug.

"Listen Blaine, you can do this" Cooper whispers into my ear. "You are one of the fastest people I know, and you are one of the best fighters in District 11. You beat everyone in that contest. You have an advantage with plants, use it! Please come back!"

"I'll try Coop" I promise. "I really will, I don't want to die yet. I'm just scared, there are 23 other tributes. Some have been training for their entire life and you know that I don't want to kill anyone! I'm so scared."

"Don't worry Blainers, just be careful" Cooper says encouragingly.

My mom is completely breaking down. She is in tears at the prospect of me going into the Hunger Games. I shake her gently and she looks at me with a sad smile.

"You can do this Blaine" She shakily says. That's all she can say before breaking down into tears. I comfort her, faintly annoyed that I am helping her when I'm the one going into the games. Thankfully Cooper pulls her away and she cries away into a corner.

"Listen Blaine, fight strong" my father starts. "Keep your dignity with you at all times, don't disappoint me whatever you do. Show me that you are a true Anderson." I feel horrified right now. He's telling me to do everything with honor, which including dying with honor. What type of father says that when his son is leaving to fight in the games?

Cooper understood what he meant too. He slammed our father against the wall, leaving me to watch.

"John Anderson, you are a jerk!" Cooper almost screams at him. Father just stares in horror. Cooper almost throws him through the doors. "Leave now and stay away from Blaine!"

Father ran as fast as he could. I numbly run and hug Coop as fast as I could. Mother joins in tentatively. We stay like that for a couple seconds until a Peacekeeper forces them out.

"We believe in you!" Cooper calls out to me.

A second later, all of my Warbler friends rush in, bumping each other in the process. They crowd around me comfortingly.

"Listen Blaine, you can win this!" Wes says. "You are the strongest out of all of the Warblers, just have courage!"

"Thanks Wes" I say.

"Here, take this" All of the Warblers say to me. Wes holds out a pin with the Warbler badge on it. "We made it in case a Warbler was picked for the Hunger Games. You especially deserve to have it, considering all you've been through" David says. "Please take it."

"Of course I will!" I say. "Thank you so much!" I pin my new pin/badge to my chest. The colors seem a little brighter than usual, like it was new rather than the used and old badges they give us that we have to give back when we are seniors. This one I could keep forever and it would remind me of my friends and my brother. This was amazing!

"I think this a perfect moment for a group hug!" Jeff exclaims, and we all converge into a huge hug. Soon, much too soon, the Peacekeepers are pulling them away and I feel myself being pushed out towards the train station. I see thousands of people around me, some taking pictures as Mercedes and I are pushed into the train. I'm so happy I hadn't cried during that emotional time. I see my friends and family in that crowd. I see the people still taking pictures as my train pulls away from the station.

Mercedes and I look at each other, and then at the train. We both gasp simultaneously and then laugh. The train looks amazing with luxuries that we would never be able to afford. There is so much food on the table; it could feed District 11 for a week! The chandeliers on the ceiling are made up of glass, and it looks beautiful. The entire train is so fancy!

Emma comes in and gestures us towards the table.

"Come and eat! You must be hungry" she gushes out.

She didn't need to ask either of us twice. We run over to the table and sit down as calmly as we could. On the table are thousands of different types of food. There are meats, breads, and the plants! There are so many, I have never been more amazed. I picked up a banana, a couple of the puffy breads, some lamb and I tried a bitter drink that they called coffee. Mercedes is also piling her plate with the food. Emma watches approvingly.

"At least you are neat and well-mannered" she compliments. "I absolutely can't stand messes, or unmannered people. They always get on my nerves. You should have seen some of the other people I've had to see from other districts. Some are so messy!"

This comment gets on my nerves. Some kids who come are from the poor side of their district, and they have just seen a mountain of food in front of them. They wouldn't care about manners at all. She has the nerve to judge us by how neat we are. The two of us have thankfully stuffed ourselves, or else she would have seen a real food fight coming.

"Sorry for being late, I can't stand being there at the reapings" someone says behind us. I think it's our mentor.

"I'm William Schuester, your mentor for the games" he answers my unspoken question. "You can call me either Schuester or Will. I usually stay in the train for the reapings, I hate seeing kids being picked, and it reminds me of my own reaping."

Well, this is a surprise. We have a mentor that isn't drunk, stupid, traumatized, or unwilling to help. No wonder District 11 has been doing so well these past years. I thought our mentor was drunk because he never comes to reapings. This must be why.

"So what are your names?" Schuester asks.

"My name is Blaine" I say.

"Mercedes" is all she says.

"Ok, Blaine, Mercedes, do you have any skills?" he asks.

"Well, I can run fast" I say. "Mercedes is really strong; she has been lifting the baskets of fruits that we collect back in District 11. We both have an extensive knowledge about plants." I talk about Mercedes because I know that she won't say anything about herself. I don't know what to say about myself besides the plants and my speed.

"Thanks Blaine!" Mercedes smiles at me. "Don't make yourself seem weak though, you are really fast. You are also so agile; I suspect that your height helps out with that." She ducks to avoid a swat from me. "What? That will be helpful to you. I'm positive your smallness helped you win that tournament, either people underestimated you or they weren't as fast!"

"So Mercedes, you stay away from the weights, and be careful around the plants, we don't want anyone to see all of your strengths" Will says. "Blaine, there is an obstacle course there, along with some punching bags. Save one for your private session with the Gamemakers, for your other skill, don't show it off."

"When we arrive at the Capitol, you will be taken to your stylists. I know that you may think that they are crazy, but don't resist" he says. "They will help you make an impression on the Capitol, and that's something you want to do."

We nod. There is nothing to say about that. It just increases our fear even more. We are moving even closer to the Capitol, to our death.

"Well, if you're done talking, can you help clean up in here?" Emma asks. "I want everything to look spotless!"

"Let the two of them see their room and get settled" Will says to my relief. "I'll help you clean up in here."

"Thank you!" Emma squeals. "I swear, it looks like an elephant has been allowed in. At least it's better than last year!" Mercedes looked at me like she thought that Emma was insane. I nod in silent agreement. The train looks very clean.

Will puts his hands on our shoulders and steers us towards each of our rooms. I step into my room and gasp. The room is huge, larger than my entire house. There is a fancy bedroom with the softest bed I have ever seen. The bathroom has a shower with hot and cold water. Only the really rich like the mayor even have a working shower. The son Shane; Mercedes's boyfriend has told me about it once. It doesn't always work for hot water, it mainly just squirts out a mix between hot and cold water. It's amazing to try it out. It feels amazing, warmer than summer rain. I stay in there for a little while and then walk into the dressing room. I pick out a brown shirt and jeans. I go back to the bed and just lie there, unable to sleep. My day was finally catching up to me. I felt the realization sink in. There was no way out of this mess, I am a tribute. I probably will die, and I will lose my friends, and more importantly, Cooper. I just lie there thinking that over and over again until I can't take it anymore. I hop out of this bed and I see a guitar and a piano. Perfect! I go over to the instruments and I search for a song that would fit. I think of one and move over to the piano. I begin to play.

_Making my way downtown,_

_Walking fast,_

_Faces past, and I'm home bound_

_Staring blankly ahead,_

_Just making my way,_

_Making my way through the crowd_

_And I need you…_

_And I miss you…_

_And now I wonder…_

_If I could fall into the sky_

_ Do you think time could pass me by?_

_Cause you know I'd walk a thousand miles_

_If I could just see you…_

_Tonight_

"Wow! That's amazing!" I hear someone say from the door. "It looks like I have a pair of musical tributes this year! Only you can play a piano though. Can you play anything else?"

I whirl around to see Will standing in the doorway clapping at my singing I'm stunned. I thought he had been cleaning with Emma, the perfectionist.

"I can play guitar too" I answer shyly. "I sing with the Warblers; that's my school's show choir group. I was the lead soloist." I catch myself saying was and correct myself in my head to is instead. I don't need to give up right now. I need to be strong if I want to go back to my old life.

"Well, I want to hear Mercedes and you sing a duet together, so can you meet me back in the main room with your guitar?" Will says with a glimmer of hope sparking in his voice. "Bring that guitar."

"Sure!" I say. With that I grab the guitar and sprint out the door.

**Please review! **

**Also, I'm going to start posting a new chapter every Tuesday now, right before Glee. I also write an original story on Fictionpress, and I need to also have time for that too. Hope you like the story! Also this is unedited, so I'm sorry if there are mistakes. **

**The song is A thousand Years by Vanessa Carlton. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks to everyone who has read my story! I never expected to reach 100 views and I'm thankful to everyone who stopped to read my story. Also big thanks to everyone who put my story on story alert! I hope this chapter is worth it! I'm really sorry for posting late, I'm going to change what I said last chapter, I will try to finish by Tuesday, I'm not promising any more. There is a lot of singing in this chapter, but I wanted a chapter where Blaine and Mercedes could show their skills, it is Glee after all. Oh yeah, Blaine's singing will still be in **_**italics. **_**Mercedes singing will be ****underlined. ****Both will be **_**both underlined and italics**_**.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or the Hunger Games. They belong to Ryan Murphy/Suzanne Collins.

I head back to the main room of the train, guitar in hand. Mercedes and Will are already there. Emma is in the kitchen cleaning up.

"Emma dear, Blaine's here" William call.

"Coming" she replies. Within seconds she's sitting in one of those plush chairs.

"So, can I hear both of you sing a song or two to show your skills?" he asks. "Blaine, I know you can play the piano and sing really well, and Mercedes, I heard you belt out a couple notes, so I know you can sing too. If you can spend a couple seconds thinking of a song that you could sing, that would be great for us!"

"Sure" we both say simultaneously. We both laugh and huddle together.

"So, what song should we sing?" Mercedes asks.

"I was thinking a song that shows our strengths" I offer.

"Yea, I like that idea" she says. "Maybe we can do a song that shows that we won't give up no matter what happens that we will fight to win."

"I have a perfect song!" I say. I lean over and whisper it into her ear. She nods and I go and pick up the guitar. I begin to strum the song and motion with my head for her to start.

You could never know what it's like

Your blood like winter freezes just like ice

But there's cold lonely light that shines from you

You'll wind up like the wreck you hide

Behind that mask you use

_And did you think this fool could never win_

_Well look at me I'm coming back again_

_I got a taste of love in a simple way_

_And if you need to know while I'm still standing _

_You just fade away_

_Don't you know I'm still standing_

_Better than I ever did_

_Looking like a true survivor_

_Feeling like a little kid_

_I'm still standing_

_After all this time_

_Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind_

_I'm still standing (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

_I'm still standing (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

Once I never could hope to win

You starting down the road

Leaving me again

_The threats you made were meant to cut me down_

_And if our love was just a circus_

_You'd be a clown by now_

_Don't you know I'm still standing_

_Better than I ever did_

_Looking like a true survivor_

_Feeling like a little kid_

_I'm still standing_

_After all this time_

_Picking up the pieces of my life without you on my mind_

_I'm still standing (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

_I'm still standing (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

I strum the last couple of notes and bring the song to a close. We look around to see both Will and Emma clapping with stunned looks on their face. Any Capitol people that have come to watch are clapping too, and whistling. Mercedes is amazed.

"Wow!" Emma squeals through her tears, she had started crying with happiness. "You two are amazing! Did you two sing in District 11" Apparently she doesn't know that any mention of District 11 really affects Mercedes and me really badly.

"We were... are in our school's glee clubs" Mercedes says. Blaine is the lead singer of the Dalton Academy Warblers; I'm one of the lead singers of the McKinley New Directions. We sometimes compete in friendly competitions." I'm thankful that she says that, I doubt I could without breaking into tears.

"I can see why you both are the leaders" Will says. "For those competitions, I sometimes would judge, I remember both of your glee clubs; I always had so much trouble choosing on who should win!"

"Thanks!" We both say simultaneously.

"Look at the time!" Emma gushes. "It's time for the reaping!" I couldn't be more thankful for the timing, I don't think I could take talking about home any more.

We crowd around the huge TV in the main room. Will turns the TV on and one by one, we see the reapings. Some of the faces stick in my mind. A fashionable boy catches my eye from one. I ignore the preppy girl and focus on the boy until the screen changes to two. A fierce boy and a Latina girl both volunteer as soon as they can. I swear the girl has razor blades in her hair! A crippled boy is picked for 3. A pretty athletic girl is picked from 4. A boy with a Mohawk and a girl about my height are picked for 8. A snarky boy with a meerkat face volunteers for no reason from 10. That was a first, usually people from 10 don't volunteer unless it's for their family. I would have to watch out for him. District 11 shows and I almost cry. I am so thankful that I didn't cry. I look calm, like I was expecting this to happen. Mercedes looks somewhat calm too. The whistle from all of our friends' makes both of us cry. I take a few seconds to compose myself and I look back at the TV. I see an innocent looking blonde girl being picked. I feel bad for her; she seems so sweet, even on the TV.

"Well, District 2 looks fierce this year, were going to have to watch out" Mercedes says.

"I'm worried about the boy from 10" I reply. "The girl doesn't look that bad, she just seems stuck up. The boy volunteered because he wants to play, that's usually a Career thought. I don't trust him at all."

"I wonder what's with four and blondes this year" Mercedes notices. "They both look athletic though, that worries me. Eight looks fierce this year, well the boy does. The girl is so short."

"HEY!" I say. "Do not underestimate size!"

"Oh, right" Mercedes grins. "I forgot about you hobbit. She might be a target, she could not. One looks very fancy like usual. Their clothes are so preppy! Especially the girl, she seems so snobby."

"Yea" I say, not trusting myself to not give anything away. I didn't want to admit to Mercedes how cute I thought the boy from 1 is. That's not something I need to say or think when that boy will be trying to kill me. This is going to be bad.

"Don't worry" Will comforts us. "Why don't you both go get some sleep for an hour or two? I'll wake both of you up when we get near the Capitol." When neither of us moves he adds. "You both will want as much sleep as you can get for the following days."

"We will clean up after you, don't worry!" Emma says. Like we would, but we both leave for our rooms.

I arrive to my room and collapse onto the bed. I want to cry for everything that's happened, but I can't. I just lie there, not able to do anything. Finally, I get back up and go to the piano. As much as I needed sleep, that wasn't going to happen. I'm about to begin when Mercedes walks in. Her eyes are red from crying.

"You couldn't sleep either?" I say gently.

"Yea, the reapings just set me off" she weeps. "How will we be able to kill these people? I just want to go home and forget about it. I wish this is just a dream."

"Me too Cedes" I whisper into her ear. "We can make it, one of us will win. You have Shane to fight for."

"You have so much to fight for though, even more than me" She murmurs. "You have your brother, and all of your friends. You have such a big potential with your music, you could probably sell your music here at the Capitol after the Games. You're so fast too, and you are such a good fighter. I'm horrible at fighting.

"You have such a strong spirit" I mutter. "Who knows, you might find a weapon when we're training that you are good at. Unless I learn a weapon, I'm dead"

"What are we doing?" Mercedes sobs. "There is a tiny chance that we will win"

"Who knows" I say. "Maybe we will break the odds and win." I get up from the piano bench and pick up the guitar. Maybe a song will calm both of us down. It always had when one of us had been bullied back at District 11.

_It starts with not questioning the answers_

_And giving up before you've begun_

_It locks all the doors_

_Increases the pressure_

_And in a flash _

_Your time is up before it's done_

_And you all know how it can feel_

_To feel at all_

_So I say no _

_To status quo_

_Who wants to be like the rest_

_And deny the best that I'm meant for_

_I will show the status quo_

_Who cares about normal?_

_I'll never conform_

_I'll be content_

_To resent the status_

_Quo_

Mercedes grins at me and begins to hum along to the music. I momentarily forget about the Games, and everything that's happening. I just focus on playing music with my best friend

_I kicked down the walls around me_

_They don't know how strong I am_

_I'm not defined by boundaries_

_They could never understand_

_I'm so much more_

_Than status quo_

_Forget about being another pipe dreamer_

_Stuck on the bottom floor_

_And I know_

_It's time to go_

_So maybe I've gotten_

_Everything that I wanted_

_But I think that I might have made it so_

_When I said_

_No _

_No _

_No_

_To status_

_Quo_

We both begin to cry. I think that she cries for the same reason that I do, for having to be forced away from our families and forced to kill innocent children where their only crime is being picked for these unfair games. Most importantly, one of us won't be able to come back to our family. There is only one victor. So either way, I'm going to lose my best friend in these cruel, unfair games.

"Please promise me Blaine that you won't sacrifice yourself for me… please" Mercedes weeps. "You deserve to win"

"Look…" I try to start.

"No excuses Blaine, you need to win. I could never live with myself if I came back and you were dead. You help me through the bullying every day. I know you think that you aren't brave, but you are. You went to Dalton to save yourself, not out of cowardice. Please promise me that you will do whatever you can to win this"

"Fine, but you have to promise the same" I grin in spite of myself.

"No punches pulled?" She finally begins to cheer up. I've never understood how she does that.

"Nope, you better prepare" I gently tap her on the shoulder. She grins and we begin to chase each other around my quarters. We plop back on the carpet, exhausted a few minutes later. At least Mercedes is exhausted, I feel like I could run forever. We just talk aimlessly for a few minutes when Will pokes his head in the door.

"Blaine… oh, and Mercedes, we're almost at the Capitol" He says, pausing in surprise when he sees Mercedes in here too. "You don't have to see, but I think you might want to have a glimpse of the Capitol. It's very different from home."

"Of course we want to go see it!" I say with glee. As much as I hate the Capitol, I do want to see it. I've heard it's amazing, and so different from District 11. Mercedes and I sprint for the door and run to the huge window in the main room. We see a little bit of District 1 when we see an amazing city loom closer into view. There it is, the Capitol. The lights blare in the city, bright sparks of lights shoot into the air. Mercedes and I press our faces into the window to get a closer look. We pass by thousands of colorful candy shops, and so many shops for fancy clothing and accessories. We don't have any shops like these in District 11, just one tiny candy shop and a couple plain clothes store. We see many Capitol citizens watching as our train go by. I wave for a little while, but soon I'm back to staring at the Capitol, with its shops and the insanely dressed people. I soon realize though, I hate it. I hate how they get everything they want while all of us in the districts, especially districts 11 and 12. I can't stop looking though, it's like my eyes are glued to the window.

"I know you two are seeing the glorious Capitol for the first time, but please listen to me" Will says, sarcasm dripping from his voice at the word glorious, and going away at the please. "When we arrive you will be put in the hands of the stylists. I know it will be different from what you're used to, and you might not like it, but don't complain or resist. The stylists will help you make a lasting impression in these games, and you want all of the help you can get. Trust me." We both nod in agreement, I've seen the games for long enough, I know that I will need as much help as I can if I want any chance of winning. I just hope we get a good stylist though, the last one; who thankfully has retired, had put last year's tributes in huge corn costumes. It had been horrible, every district, even 12, had looked better than us.

"We're here!" Emma shrieks. I feel terrified; I'm closer to the arena, and to my possible death. "What are you waiting here for? Let's go!"

**I'm really busy next week, so I'm going to try to post again really soon. **

**The first song is I'm Still Standing by Elton John, although I actually just took the glee version and made Quinn's part into Mercedes's part, and Artie's part into Blaine's part.**

**The second song is called Status Quo. It's actually written by Darren for Starship (which is an amazing musical by Starkid on youtube, if you haven't seen it, check it out) and it's sung by Joey Richter. I have found a version with Darren singing it, and I'm going to try to find it again on youtube because right now it's on my ipod touch so I can't post a link for it. **

**Please review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Once again, thank you to everyone who's read my story! Sorry for the long break again, this week is hell week for my musical, so I've had little time to write. I am so sorry for that.**

**PLEASE READ! WILL BE HELPFUL!**

**This was supposed to be in the last chapter, but I forgot. Just saying, there is one OC, but she will not do anything except be there. There aren't enough main girl characters in glee to have 12 tributes, so I'm just adding someone random. Here's the list of tributes.**

**District 1: Kurt Hummel, Sugar Motta**

**District 2: Dave Karofsky, Santana Lopez**

**District 3: Artie Abrams, Tina Cohen-Chang**

**District 4: Sam Evans, Quinn Fabray**

**District 5: Jesse St. James. Lauren Zizes**

**District 6 Mike Chang, Becky Jackson**

**District 7: Rory Flanagan, Sunshine Corazon**

**District 8: Noah (Puck) Puckerman, Rachel Berry**

**District 9: Finn Hudson, Kaleen Joyce**

**District 10: Sebastian Smythe, Harmony **

**District 11: Blaine Anderson, Mercedes Jones**

**District 12: Joe Hart, Brittany S. Pierce**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or Hunger Games. There would be a lot less Finchel in Glee if I did.**

"Look at you, you're almost done!" Azurine; who is one of my prep team members, babbles on as they "prepare" me for the opening ceremonies. Personally, I think that I'm like a bird being plucked for a roasting. I don't say anything though, my promise to Will seals my mouth shut, since I know that I will complain if I open my mouth. They have scrubbed, and cleaned my body until my skin is stinging and I feel like thousands of layers of my skin have come right off. I can't even begin to understand why the Capitol citizens do this. It feels horrible, and I hate it. At least I'm not a girl, I've heard they have to deal with a lot more.

"I love quiet tributes; they don't whine or make any trouble!" Kakar grins. They talk about me like I'm not in the room, like I'm nothing. I barely stop myself from blurting out how I feel. Instead I force my face into a smile. I begin to use all of my years performing to help myself out.

"Thank you so much!" I say sweetly, molding my face into a soft smile that I'm so good at doing. "I've never been to the Capitol before, it's amazing! I've never been this clean ever."

This does the trick for them. I force myself to keep the small, kind smile as they look horrified, and then they begin to comfort me like it's a bad thing. I guess that's what they're used to in life. My smile suddenly feels a lot less forced.

"Don't worry, you will love it here!" Taber grins as they pour lotion all over me. For the first time since I've been in here, the lotion doesn't hurt my raw skin, but soothes it instead. "The Capitol is amazing; there is so much to do here!"

"I'll be sure to enjoy it as much as I can then" I say. They continue to prattle on about how spectacular the Capitol is, and I have to tune out what they're saying so I don't say anything cruel. At least their intentions are pure, they're just stupid, and they don't know any better.

"Look! You're done!" Azurine squeals in happiness. Taber hands me my robe, which I put on. "Let's go get Shelby!"

The three of them leave and I sigh with relief. Hopefully this Shelby is a good stylist, and by good I mean that she will give me a good impression, not a bad. I take a piece of bread and wait for them to come back.

A woman walks through the doors surrounded by my prep team and I gasp. She looks normal compared to some Capitol citizens. She's wearing a nice grey skirt and a white blouse. She is wearing a little bit of make-up, but she doesn't wear so much that it looks abnormal. She hasn't altered herself, and her hair is brown, and it looks like her natural color.

"Hi Blaine, I'm Shelby, your stylist" She introduces herself.

"Hi" is all I say.

"Thank you three, you may go now" She murmurs to her prep team. They all skip away. I'm somewhat jealous of their enthusiasm, they aren't about to go into an arena and either die, or kill. Shelby pulls up two plush chairs and sits in one of them. I walk over to the other.

"I don't want to sound mean, but are you new?" The words fly out of my mouth before I can stop them.

"No, I've done the designs for 1 and 5" She answers. "I've always wanted to do 11 though, there are so many ideas!"

Now I recognize her from previous games. Her ideas for 1 had been stunning, everyone had loved them. 5 had also done better when she was their stylist. I suddenly feel overjoyed, I have one of the best stylists, and I have a chance.

"So I know that District 11 is agriculture, so they usually get farmer outfits" she starts. "I don't like that though. It's too close to 10, and nobody likes it. The only district worse than us is 12. I thought that we could focus on the beauty of plants." Now I feel a bit of worry, a few people have done actual plant costumes, and they never go well. Everyone hates them. Only the fact that Shelby has always done phenomenal costumes keeps me from freaking out.

"I hope you like this" She says as she hands me a bundle of clothes, and calls for my prep team to come back in, I put the clothes on and gasp in wonder.

The costume seems simple at first, but more and more intricate as I continue to stare at it. It's a sky blue, except that it's darker than usual. The undershirt is wheat like tan with a collar that is the same color as the jacket. The jacket itself looks like wheat is sprouting out in it, with its tan streaks, and the jacket has a green rim on it, like grass, and there are little sprouts of green at the bottom. The pants are a dark brown, like dirt although that color works very well for me. I have a laurel wreath around my head. My hair is cut, gelled, and for the first time ever, tame. I look like a field, and it has a very soothing and good effect on all of us. I love the outfit. I have brown dress shoes.

"Wow! I love it" I exclaim in joy. "This is amazing! It looks both fashionable and like District 11. The plants, exactly how grass and soil and the plants are! Thank you."

"You're welcome" she says. "Wait! I forgot something." I look at her in surprise, what could she have forgotten? She pulls out a little box and puts a white bowtie on me. I feel overjoyed now, I love bowties. This is absolutely perfect!

"There!" she says. I gasp at the image, and my prep team cheers at me.

"Now let's go see Mercedes!" Shelby says.

We walk out of that room and go to a sitting room in the remake center. There are some chairs and sofas, and I go to a plush blue chair and sit down. We wait for a few minutes and then Mercedes comes in. I gasp in shock and wonder. She is in a beautiful blue dress the same shade as me. The tank top sleeves are a tan, and the dress flows out in wings. Each layer is bordered with tan, making a field similar to mine. She has brown sandals on and her hair is beautifully curled with a laurel wreath like mine on her head. We both look stunning; this is the best District 11 has ever had before. Mercedes's stylist introduces herself as Holly Holiday. I thank her politely while silently letting out a breath in relief. We both would make District 11 noticeable, and unforgettable. Thank goodness.

"Well what's keeping you two, let's go!" Holly says. She is a lot more easy-going than Shelby. Holly has fancier clothes and some more makeup than Shelby, but she looks okay. I can't criticize her since she's helping Mercedes and I make an impression in the Capitol.

We go down the elevator to the bottom floor of the remake center, or the stables. We have about ½ an hour until the ceremony starts. I look around until I see the dark brown horses of District 11. I see Will and Emma waiting for us. All four of us head over to them.

"Wow! Great job you two!" Will says with glee. "I can't believe it; these costumes will definitely make a very good impression on the audience. Good job Shelby and Holly!"

"Thanks Will" Shelby says.

"Look at the time Will, we aren't supposed to be in here now" Emma says. "Let's get to the mentor and escort spot in the crowd and wait."

"Sure Emma, let's go" Will says. "Hey Blaine and Mercedes, try and make some allies now. They will help you in the future."

"Okay" we say.

The two of them head off to the crowd and Mercedes and I look at each other.

"Let's split up, maybe we can find more allies that way" Mercedes says.

"Sure, meet you here in 15 minutes?" I ask.

"Yep" she agrees.

I start walking around the stables, looking for a potential ally for me. I don't realize where I'm going though, and I end up walking straight into someone.

"Oh sorry…" I say to the boy I knocked over. I hold out my hand to help him up and he takes it. I look at him and I realize it's the boy from District 1. I force myself to not lose control over myself.

"My name's Blaine" I say.

"I'm Kurt" Kurt says. I continue to force myself not to do anything stupid around him. Those blue eyes are not helping me out here. I decide to start a conversation.

"You're from District 1?" I ask.

"Yep, I love it there. All of the fashion and jewelry surrounding me, it's amazing" Kurt says, staring off into the distance. "The Capitol is like that too, although I like it at home a lot more. You're from District 11, I remember you from the reapings.

"Yep, the Capitol is so different from 11" I say.

"I can believe that" Kurt agrees. I realize that the sparkly blue tux they gave him was bringing out the colors in his eyes. Not helpful for me, I can't fall for someone who will try to kill me.

"We should probably go back to our chariots" Kurt mentions quietly, breaking the silence.

"Yea, we should" I look up at the clock above us. It's been almost 15 minutes. "Bye"

"Goodbye"

I head back to our chariot, trying not to think about Kurt. Mercedes comes back a few minutes later.

"Did you meet anyone that could be a potential ally?" I ask quickly. The best way to avoid questions is to ask, and the last thing I wanted is for Mercedes to ask me, I didn't want to accidently reveal my feelings; I am really bad at hiding crushes.

"The boy from four is really nice" Mercedes says. "There wasn't enough time to check out anyone else, the girl was being a real snob. What about you?" I notice that she has a slight smile when she mentions the boy from 4. I guess I'm not the only one.

"I ended up running into the boy from 1, and he seemed really nice" I say. I try not to smile when I think of him. "Like you, I didn't get to talk to anyone else" To stop myself from doing anything stupid I do a quick glance around. My eyes pass by 10's chariot when I see that snarky boy staring at me. I feel my face flush quickly and I look away as quick as I can. The way he is staring, it seems like he's been doing that for a while now. It was kind of creepy

I look at the time; one minute until the opening ceremony begins. I climb into the chariot, and help Mercedes in. A gong begins to clang and the stable doors open. It's time.

One's chariots go out and we all hear roars from the crowd. No surprise there. Two goes out in their peacekeeping uniforms, but they were made to represent stones. There were gasps of surprise from the crowd with two, but that soon changes to constant cheering. Three goes out and there's just standard clapping. Four gets major applause. Then 5, 6, 7, and 8 just got standard applause. Eight is just horrible, they look like fierce clowns! Nine gets a bit more cheering, but not that much. 10 are awarded with more applause then they have ever received before, I guess they look okay. Then we go out.

I grab Mercedes's hand and we clutch each other as our chariot leaves the building. The lights from the Capitol make our costumes shine out even more. Almost silence as everyone is in shock. Then the crowd roars their shock and surprise. They seem amazed at us. They start chanting our names and our district. I think we are being applauded more than one or two. It's an amazing feeling. I smile gratefully; making thousands of Capitol citizens scream as we make it to the City Circle and we wait for 12 to come out. 12 looks horrible, dressed in some baggy miners costume. All of the chariots wait for Snow to come out.

"Welcome everyone to the 48th Hunger Games!" Snow begins in his snaky way. "May the odds be _ever _in your favor tributes!" The crowd cheers at his words. I notice however, many of the citizens would occasionally glance back at us. It was like a spotlight was put onto the two of us, and the citizens were drawn to our costumes like moths to a flame. I said a silent thanks to Shelby; she has just given me one of the best advantages in the games, I am unforgettable. I continue to smile as Snow continues his speech. The chariots go around the circle once more and I see Snow staring at us too. He notices me looking at him and he quickly looks at the other chariots. Mercedes and I continue to clutch hands as we go back to the stable. We finally let go and we both shake our hands out as we go into the stable. Shelby and Holly surround us, congratulating how amazing we were out there. I'm too overwhelmed to say anything, but I just let them lead Mercedes and me to the large TV screen. Will and Emma are there, and they break into cheers when they see us.

"You were amazing out there!" Emma screams. "You two completely stood out against everyone else!"

"Yea" Will cheer. "Shelby and Holly, I am amazed with your costumes! Who wants to see the opening ceremonies?"

"I do!" I say.

Will turns on the TV and District 6 pops on the screen. We all wait for 11 to come on, and we barely listen to Caesar as he talks until 9 gets on. I realize they look like big pieces of wheat. They may be grain, but 11 also did a bunch of wheat products. Usually though, using wheat was very risky for us, it was totally worth it. Not only did we outshine everyone, but we pretty much eliminated 9 from being remembered. Soon 10 slips on

"Wow… 10 actually looks amazing for the first time in years!" Caesar exclaims. "They match the district, but they actually look sane. I cannot wait to see what this new stylist pulls out for 10." Shoot… another district did insanely well, and it isn't one, two, or four. Finally District 11 comes up.

"Look at that!" Caesar says. "They look stunning! The design is very different than usual, and it is perfect! They are even better than 10, look at how their outfits give the impression of plants without looking too much like 9 or looking like some of the previous costumes, they are perfect this year! I have to give a round of applause to the stylists who designed these stunning costumes!"

All of us scream in happiness and excitement; we had been the best.

"Well… on that note, you two should get some sleep" Will says. "Good night!"

"Night" I say as I go up to my quarters. This room is even better than the train, but I'm too tired to care right now. I take a quick shower to get all of the gel out of my hair, and I collapse on the bed and fall asleep.

**Please review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Once again to everyone who is reading, I'm so sorry for taking so long. Since the play is finished I will be a lot better at updating. I'm just taking forever catching up with schoolwork, and with SOLs coming, that's going to take forever. Thank you for continuing to read my story. This will be a little bit different, I'm (finally) adding Kurt's POV to the story. **

**Warning: Homophobia a bit in this chapter, and mentions in this chapter. If you don't like, I'm really sorry, but I advise that you don't read. **

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I still don't own glee except for in my dreams.**

When I wake up I feel wide awake, and a bit excited, and really nervous. The next three days would really help me stand a chance in these games. I look around in my quarters until I see the outfit that I am going to wear for practices. It's a black shirt and grey pants. They would work I guess. I can't go against Shelby's ideas.

I change and take the elevator down to the dining area. Will, Shelby, and Holly are already there. They are all whispering urgently, but they stop when they see me. Shelby waves me over to the table. I load my plate with food, and I grab a glass of water before sitting down. Holly passes me the bread bowl and I pick up a piece before passing it to the next person. I want to gain as much weight as possible before the games. Mercedes comes down and sits next to me.

"Since your both here, we can begin" Will says. "First, do you want to train together or separately?"

"What do you think?" Mercedes whispers into my ear.

"If we separate, we can learn more… if we ally of course" I murmur back.

"Why wouldn't we?" Mercedes asks. "I want to be able to help each other out"

"I think though that we should go together, but we can do separate stations sometimes" I whisper.

"Then let's train together" Mercedes says out loud to the group.

"Okay then" Will says. "I do want you both to try to see if you find any potential allies again. You have no clue how much somebody can save you" I wonder what he really means by that.

"Don't worry Mr. Schue, we want to make sure we survive for a little while" Mercedes agrees.

"Hate to break up your cozy conversation, but it's almost 10!" Emma says. She pulls the two of us up and steers us towards the elevator that will take us to the gymnasium. I am silent with anxiety. Soon I will see my fellow tributes again. I will see how little I have on winning these games. Kurt will be there too. That's going to be awkward… I can't have a crush… or any type of friendship with a guy who's going to try to kill me. That would just get me killed, and I can't have that happen. I need to get home.

When we get downstairs, almost everyone is there. Someone pins the number 11 onto my back, and I join the circle of tributes waiting. Soon the last two people; who are from district 12, join us. The trainer Atala begins to explain what each station is. She finishes quickly, and after another reminder to not spar with other tributes; she lets us go. Looking for a good station, I survey the room. Mercedes appears at my side.

"Where do you want to go first?" she asks.

"How about we do fighting first, and then we can do all of the survival stations after lunch" I suggest after thinking for a second.

"Okay, how about we start out with spear throwing?" she asks.

"Sure!" I say.

We go over to the spear throwing station. The trainer is helping the boy from 9 throw a spear for the first time. He is very big and tall, and his aim is spectacular. He always hits bull's eye. Mercedes and I both grab a spear as another trainer comes up to the two of us.

"Hello, my name is Blanca" she says after a quick handshake to the two of us. She then goes right into teaching us how to throw a spear. I find out that I have excellent aim, but not as much power. Mercedes has plenty of power, but her aim isn't the best. Blanca helps me for a bit, but once she sees that I can do this, she goes over to Mercedes and helps her improve her aim. I continue to put more power into my throws, until the spear is flying through the air to hit its target.

"Mercedes, do you want to go to another station?" I ask.

"Sure" she says quickly.

We head over to the archery station. After the spear throwing station, we both excel at this. I have a bit of an easier time with my aim. We both try to seem as mediocre as possible, so we leave that station quickly. We then go to the obstacle course. Mercedes is winded halfway, while I speed through it many times. Kurt joins me. I try not to do anything stupid as I finish the course again. Kurt taps me on the shoulder when I finish.

"Hey Blaine" Those blue eyes look at me. I feel my face burning. I hope that he thinks I'm just tired from the course rather than trying not to stare back into his eyes.

"Hi Kurt" I reply as normally as I can.

"You're fast, I could never go through that course in the speed that you do. I saw your aim too, I'm very impressed."

"Thanks" I say with wonder. Where is he going with this?

"I saw you with the swords" The words just tumble out of my mouth. It's like I have no control over myself. "You were amazing. I wish I had that power behind my swings" Oh gosh, what am I getting myself into.

"Thanks!" Kurt has a snarky grin on his face now. "Damn, there's Sugar calling me to come. Talk to you soon?"

"Sure." With that Kurt left to go talk to his district partner. I look around for Mercedes when I see her talking to the boy from four. She looks like she is trying to hold back a grin, but is failing. Beginning to grin myself, I head over to the knife throwing station and lose myself there throwing knifes. Soon lunch comes around and I go over to the tributes from 6. The girl has Down syndrome I think; she acts very queen-like. Overall, I think she is okay, but I don't really want to ally with her. Mike on the other hand is very fun to talk to, and I enjoy lunch being able to talk to him. Like me, he is a dancer and he sings in show choir in his district. I decide I might want to ally with him. I join back up with Mercedes at the fire-making station. Here's a station that Mercedes excels at. She can make a fire with virtually anything! Once she made a fire, she knew exactly what to feed it to make it strong and powerful.

"In 11, my family would cook our food over a fire instead on a stove" Mercedes mentions to me. "We don't have any type of stove at home, but we needed to cook our food somehow. So we learned how to cook over fire." She bends over to my fire, or lack of, and with a little help from her, it blooms into exactly what I wanted. I ignore the trainer, and just watch Mercedes until I can start a decent fire. We both then go over to the knot-tying station. The trainer teaches both of us a few basic snares, and then Mercedes goes to camouflage. I perfect my noose, and then I head over to the punching bags. Completely ignoring the trainer, I begin to punch. I get into a smooth rhythm and start singing.

_Well, I thought I knew you_

_Thinking, that you were true_

_Guess I, I couldn't trust_

_Call your bluff, time is up _

_Cause I've had enough_

I wasn't really sure what I was singing about. I think I'm singing about my entire life, from my family to my emotions that are swirling inside of me right now about Kurt and these wretched games, and my fear about getting killed in the games, or losing my self-control and becoming one of those insane killers.

_You were there by my side_

_Always down for the ride_

_But your joy ride just came down in flames,_

'_Cause your greed sold me out in shame_

_Mmm,_

_After all of the stealing and cheating_

_You probably think that I hold resentment for you_

_But uh uh_

_Oh no, you're wrong_

'_Cause if it wasn't for all that you tried to do_

_I wouldn't know_

_Just how capable I am to pull through_

_So I wanna say thank you_

'_Cause it makes me that much stronger_

_Makes me work a little bit harder_

_It makes me that much wiser_

_So thanks for making me a fighter_

_Made me learn a little bit faster_

_Made my skin a little bit thicker_

_Makes me that much stronger_

_So thanks for making me a fighter_

**Kurt's POV**

The curly haired boy finishes talking to me and leaves to go to a different station. I debate on following him, but I decide against it. I don't want to seem like a stalker. I settle for the sword fighting station. I spar with one of the attendants when I begin to hear singing. It's coming from where the punching bags. It's quiet, but the emotion in this song is amazing I look around for the source of the singing and I find it's the curly haired boy, or Blaine. I'm just blown away; he had such an amazing voice. The song was helping him punch too. His punches were stronger, and his hits were more precise with every hit. I sneak closer to the punching bags to watch him. His face is mixed with emotions; his body tense. I watch silently until he finishes the song with a heart-wrenching cry/stunning note. I'm torn on what to do. I really want to go up to Blaine and comfort him, but I don't want to reveal that I had been spying on him.

I'm spared from that decision by the boy from 2 slamming me into the wall

"Watch yourself you little fairy!" he sneers at me. I just stay there, unable to move or do anything. I can't move; it's too hard. All of the memories from my high school come flooding back to me. I don't notice anything. The only time I look up is when I feel two people shaking me.

**Blaine's POV**

After practicing on the punching bag, I feel much better. My limbs feel looser, and I am more relaxed. I find Mercedes at the edible bugs' station.

"Hey M, do you want to go to a different station?" I ask.

"Sure! How about the sword station?" she looks over to make sure it's free.

"That sounds great!"

We both start walking over when I notice the boy from earlier; Kurt. He's leaning against the wall like it's the only thing holding him up. He seems to be taking very deep breaths. The closer I get, I begin to notice a faraway look in his eyes, a look that also shows fear. I run over to him, Mercedes following close behind when she sees Kurt.

"Kurt, are you okay?" I say worriedly. He doesn't answer, but just continues to stare. I wave my hand over his eyes. Nothing happens. Now I'm scared at what's happening.

"Kurt! Snap out of it!" My voice begins to rise in fear. I don't know what just happened to him, but if it's anything like what had happened to me, that's really bad. Mercedes glances at me and I can tell that she's worried about the same thing.

"Kurt, Kurt!" now both of us are almost yelling his name into his ear. He doesn't notice anything. I'm really scared right now.

Both Mercedes and I grab his shoulders and begin to shake them somewhat violently. This gets his attention. He looks up in fear only to relax when he sees our scared faces staring back at him. I feel myself relaxing too; I had been so scared that he had been regressing; just as I had before.

"Are you okay?" Mercedes asks gently. I can tell that she's wondering what has happened to him.

"I'll be fine now, thanks… um, what's your name?" Kurt attempts to put on a brave face, but fails.

"Mercedes. Don't worry about it" she grins.

"I feel really bad now, I've just used some time that you could've been using to train" Kurt looks down in shame. My heart is breaking into tiny fragments for this boy; who I didn't even know.

"Don't worry about it Kurt" I say. "Can you tell us what happened though? I don't think you can just fall into something like that out of nowhere."

"I…" Kurt is almost at the point of tears. "I'm not sure if I can."

"Do you just want to tell me?" I ask. As trustworthy as Mercedes is, I think this is a topic I will be able to understand more.

"Yes, sorry Mercedes" he goes for another attempt at a grin.

"Oh don't worry about it white kid" now she is grinning even more. "I'm going over to the sword fighting station if you need me."

I go and sit next to Kurt. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"I hate to ask this, but are you gay?" Kurt asks very tentatively, like he's scared what my reaction will be. He looks absolutely terrified when I begin to chuckle. I stop quickly.

"Yep, out and proud" I can't hold back in a grin. His face is priceless; I don't think he thought I was at all. I guess I don't act the stereotypical gay, but still. "Are you?"

"Yea, I thought it would be very obvious; everyone says that it's super easy to tell" Kurt says.

"I don't like to judge people" I say.

"You're very different than people back at home. While being gay isn't really a bad thing; one being a fashion district and such, but not everyone is very accepting back at home. Since I was also in the glee club at my school, my social ratings were at a zero. I was bullied all of the time, and nobody was really there to help." It was like he really just needed to get this off of his chest, but had never gotten the chance before now. It's horrible that he has to be picked for the games to get that chance. "Every day, I would be pushed into lockers or down stairs. Almost every day I would get slushied. It was just horrible.

"So what happened this time?" I ask. "As horrible as that is, you don't just randomly go into your own world because of fear."

"Can… can I tell you later?" Kurt's now mumbling his words. "I don't want to tell you here."

"Sure" I say with a mixture of sadness and relief. As much as I want to help this boy, I'm scared to find out the story, and I'm scared that he will find out mine, and I'm not sure I'm ready to tell him. "Do you want to continue practicing?"

"That sounds like a good idea, let's go find Mercedes" now his grin seems a lot less forced.

We go over to the sword-fighting station where Mercedes is learning how to use a sword for the first time. Kurt and I join her and we continue to spar. It turns out that Kurt had some training back home with swords, and he has a natural talent with swords. He's so good that I just watch him instead of watching the trainer. Mercedes see's what I'm doing and laughs. I glare at her for a couple seconds and she stops quickly. Kurt glances back to see the two of us failing at both swords and not laughing at each other. He groans and we both burst out laughing. Kurt has a disdainful expression on which makes us laugh harder. It takes us a few minutes to control our laughing. I decide to like Kurt.

At the end of the day, I'm almost positive I'm going to ally with Kurt. The only main problem with that is my crush. After today I feel like I can relate to him more and more. Speaking of that, I need to do one more thing if I'm going ally with Kurt.

With all of the crowds pushing in all around me, it's very hard to look around. Kurt thankfully looks very different from the rest of the tributes. Something that is both cute and really helpful right now.

Wait… did I just think cute? Oh gosh… now is not the time to be thinking this. I can't even have any thoughts like that in my head. No matter how much I wish I could.

I keep on looking for Kurt. I had been able to free myself of Mercedes by telling her that Kurt promised me that he would tell me the whole story of what happened, and I would tell her if I can. Thankfully Mercedes understood and let me go and promised to explain to Will and Emma.

There! He's by the potted plant. I rush over to him, taking great care not to startle him. I wave before coming up to him. He waves back, relieving me of any fear that he's gone back into his own world.

"Do you want to go to the roof?" I ask quickly. "The wind can be a bit loud, but it's beautiful.

"Sure!" Kurt says.

When we go over to the elevator, a few kids stop us. One of them makes Kurt start to shake with fear. I recognize both tributes from 2 and 10, and the boy from 8. The boy from 10 throws a snarky grin at me, surprising both of us.

"Get out of the way you fairy" the huge boy from 2 sneers at Kurt. Kurt is absolutely terrified now, scaring me too.

"Well, we can't get out of the way when you're in our way" the words fall out of my mouth before I can stop them.

"Aren't you a smart-aleck?" now the boy from 10; the one who's stares at me, has now come up to stand next to the boy from 2. He whispers into his ear and 2 backs away.

"Fairy, you can leave your little hobbit to talk with me" 2 says with a grin. "If you want to survive a bit longer, you might want to." I glare at 2.

"That sounds like a good idea Kurt" I say quickly. "I'll meet you soon."

"Thank you" 8 says in a falsely thankful voice.

"We want you to join our alliance" 10 starts off quickly. "We saw you fight, and you have power in you." I wonder if he meant that he had watched me.

"May I answer you tomorrow?" I ask politely. "Or can I know you're names?"

"Sorry, my name is Sebastian" Sebastian always has this snarky grin on his face. "This is Dave or Karofsky" the boy from 2 grins. "Santana" the Latina grins. "Harmony," the girl from 10 waves at me. "And Puck is over here." The boy with the Mohawk smiles.

"I'll tell you tomorrow" I say with as much dapperness that I can provide. This group proves to be the Careers of this year. This is the first time I have ever seen 8 and 10 be in the group. They all just scare me.

I go over to the elevator where Kurt is waiting.

"Let's go"

**That was by far the longest chapter I have ever written. I hope this super long chapter makes up for the long wait. I have SOLs coming up (for anyone who doesn't know, they are big tests that I have to take ALONG with finals). **

**The song was Fighter by Christina Aguilera. I really couldn't resist not using this song somewhere in the story. It's just too amazing. **

**Just wondering, who saw Darren hosting the Audience choice awards? I missed most of it, but I got to see the opening number. It's so funny! **

**Finally, I have a tumblr if anyone wants to ask me any questions. It's Starcrystal8.**


	6. Chapter 6

**I'm going to start saying who's POV it is now since I added in Kurt's. For anyone who saw Nationals/props, I loved it so much! The songs were very good, and go Rachel for getting a second chance! Also, thank goodness Beiste (sorry about my spelling if that's wrong) left Cooter! Plus more songs with Unique. Very emotional episode, but it was perfect to me. Now it's the finale. I don't think I'm ready for this… I don't want to see graduation!**

**Disclaimer: once again, I do not own glee or the hunger games. **

**Blaine's POV**

Kurt is silent as we go up to the roof. I'm lost in thoughts myself. I continue to replay what just happened in my head. Why did the Careers want me? No matter what Sebastian said, I don't believe it was purely on talent; I'm not that good. Actually, I'm almost positive that if Sebastian hadn't talked to Karofsky that I would've been pummeled. Why did he though? Now I'm really confused on what's happened. I'll talk to Mercedes after this. For now, I need to focus about Kurt. I have a huge suspicion that Karofsky has something to do with it.

"Blaine, we're here" Kurt's words break me from my thoughts.

"Then let's go!" I say cheerily.

We step out of the elevator onto the roof. It's a very relaxing place, but the garden is ten times better. I lead Kurt over and sit on one of the benches. Leaning against the benches, I look around to make sure that we are alone. I lean in closer.

"So what happened in the training center?" I decide to go straight to the topic that's been running through my head since I had seen him against that wall. Kurt shudders at my sentence. My hands unconsciously go around him and he leans into me for support.

"It was…Karofsk…ky" Kurt flinches at the name. I barely keep myself from going out of here and beating him up. "He pushed me into the wall and… and… he called me a fairy Blaine. It just reminded me of home… I couldn't do anything to get up. All I saw were the bullies from home." I'm barely holding back my anger at Karofsky; why would he do that to someone as sweet as Kurt. Trying to calm him down, I rub his back and let him lean against me. He continues to shudder in my arms. A few moments later he starts sobbing. I begin to sing.

_Everybody's waiting_

_Everybody's watching_

_Even when you're sleeping_

_Keep your ey-eyes open_

_A tricky thing_

_As yesterday we were just children_

_Playing soldiers just pretending _

_Dreaming dreams with happy endings_

_In backyards, winning battles with our _

_Wooden swords_

_But now we've stepped into a_

_Cruel world_

_Where everyone stands and keeps score_

_Keep your eyes open_

_Everybody's waiting for you to break down_

_Everybody's watching to see the fallout _

_Even when you're sleeping, sleeping_

_Keep your ey-eyes, open_

_So here you are_

_Two steps ahead and staying on guard_

_Every lesson forms a new scar_

_They never thought you'd make it this far_

Kurt has stopped crying now and is listening intently to my singing. He is still lying against me, and I make no movement to shrug him off. I kind of like it actually.

_But turn around_

_Oh they've surrounded you_

_It's a showdown_

_And nobody comes to save you now_

_But you've got something they don't _

_Yeah you've got something they don't _

_You just gotta keep your eyes open_

_Everybody's waiting to see the breakdown_

_Everybody's watching to see the fallout_

_Even when you're sleeping, sleeping_

_Keep your ey-eyes open_

I finish with Kurt looking up at me. Wow, I have never had this big of a crush on somebody. Even Jeremiah wasn't like this. It's like a burning passion inside of me. I lean in just as he does. Our lips are about to meet as he pulls back quickly. Surprised, and a little hurt, I look at him.

"I'm so sorry, but I can't do this" Kurt says. "I don't… I can't fall in love with someone who's out to kill me! I just want this to be over soon so I can go back home. I never meant to fall in love with anyone here. I…I… I just want to go home" Kurt is back to crying. Privately I'm amazed that he still has any tears left after earlier, but I guess he does. He leans into my shirt and sobs into it. I rub his back and let him sob.

"Me too Kurt, me too" I say in a soothing type of voice. We just stay like that until Kurt eases himself out of my shirt. He laughs shakily and stands up.

"As much as I would love to stay like that, we should probably go back downstairs" Kurt says.

"No, please stay a bit longer Kurt" I say. He's about to say something when I do my puppy dog eyes at him. He begins to glare at me after a few seconds, and then he sits down next to me. We cuddle as the sun goes down on the Capitol. The sun is almost down when Kurt gets up again.

"I really have to go. Beiste will get worried if I'm not at dinner" Kurt shakes himself and helps me up. "Will you come back tonight? Also, you can tell Mercedes what I told you. I trust her"

"Of course Kurt" I say.

"Wow… being slated for death does speed up a relationship doesn't it" I'm unable to keep a grin off my face at his words. I want to kiss him so much, but he's right. We can't let this continue. Even if I really want too, I can't. Chances are though, it will continue. Love never goes as planned.

"I'll see you tonight" I say as I climb down the ladder from the roof.

**I'm sorry for the short chapter, but it was just turning out to be my shortest chapter. Chapter 7 is already started, but with SOLs and an audition tomorrow, I'm not sure when I'm going to get time to write. Hopefully this weekend, but knowing my luck something random is going to come up. Also, I am so, so, SO sorry for no Klaine kiss! There will be one very soon, I promise. There is a good reason why, I do like Klaine and I want more Klaine moments on glee. **

**The song was Eyes Open by Taylor Swift. It's on the Hunger Games album.**

**Please Review! There is a blue button below that you can click and review on!**


	7. Chapter 7

**First off, thanks to anyone who's still reading this! Second, who saw the finale of Glee? I hated it so much, it was confusing, boring, there was NOT enough Klaine, and Kurt didn't get in! How did the stalking choking girl get in, but not the boy who rocked his audition? I mean really, that was the worst episode Glee has ever done in my opinion!**

**Again, I'm so, SO sorry for taking so long. I've been extremely busy along with the torture of a little thing called a writer's block. I hope to eventually get to updating once a week, but I'm going to doubt it right now. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Glee or the HG.**

**Blaine's POV**

I go to District 11's floor and pretty much run straight into Mercedes. She whirls around and is about to go all diva mode when she realizes it's me. She then helps me regain my balance since I'm about to fall straight on my face. She grabs my shoulders and steers me into a storage closet. Somewhat confused, I go without any complaint.

"Is Kurt okay? What had happened to him?" Mercedes goes right to her point. "If anyone had been mean to him they are going DOWN!" I shake her gently to get her to quiet down. Thank goodness Kurt had said I was allowed to tell Mercedes. I don't know what I would've done if he said that I couldn't.

"Kurt's okay now, don't worry" I decide to give her the good news first, and then explain what had happened to him. "The guy from District 2 decided to bully Kurt since he thought Kurt is gay; which he is, but still. Kurt had been bullied like I had in District 1. Even though 1 is one of the most accepting districts, it's not perfect. Karofsky; the guy from 2, decided to push Kurt around, Kurt froze and could only remember the bullies from district 1. He tried again at the elevator. Thankfully this time Kurt stood up for himself." I decide not to tell Mercedes about Sebastian and the Careers inviting me into their alliance.

"Blaine… what are you hiding from me?" Mercedes has a confused expression on her face. Crap, I should've known that she would be able to tell I'm hiding something. When I don't answer she stares at me pleadingly. "Please Blaine, I want to know." She even does puppy dog eyes at me.

"Fine… Mercedes please stop doing those eyes!" I really hate those eyes; I can never win any argument when she does that. To be fair, I can do them too. I have a secret belief that a District 11 trait is puppy dog eyes. "At the elevators, I defended Kurt from the bullies. Karofsky was about to attack me when the guy from 10 stopped him. The rest of the Careers had come and circled us, so neither of us could have left. Sebastian; the guy from 10 told Kurt that he could leave if I stayed to 'talk'" I put as much emphasis on talk as I can. She groans and walks over to me. With a quick arm movement, Mercedes gestures for me to continue. "It wasn't that bad, they invited me to join the Careers. They didn't hurt me at least" She lets out a loud gasp of surprise. Her mouth opens even wider and no sound comes out. She must still think that it's the usual districts in the Careers, not the ones that make up the Careers this year.

"What! They invited you to join them!" she paces the hallway with shock and suspicion clear on her face. "Why would they do that? What did you say?"

"I told them that I would answer them tomorrow" I say. She takes a quick breath. "I'm not really sure why they invited me, but the districts the Careers are from this year are very different. It's all from 2 and 10, and the boy from 8. So this year, I don't think Districts matter when it comes to Career tributes."

"WHAT!" Mercedes almost brings out every person in this hall. "I've never heard Career tributes not being from 1, 2, and 4 with the occasional 3, but 10 and 8? That's insane."

"I feel like the girl from one will join too" I say. Now Will and Emma have come out to see who's causing the all of the ruckus. They see Mercedes and me and come up to us.

"What's going on?" Will asks.

"Blaine was invited to join the Careers" Mercedes steps in front of me, her fiery temper making her seem harsh, and jealous. Maybe she is, I don't know.

"Wow… that's a first" Will says. "It's so rare that someone from 11 will be asked to join. What did you say Blaine?"

"I said that I would answer tomorrow" putting my hand on Mercedes shoulder, I move right next to her. "Also, this year, there are no 'typical' Career tributes. From what I know, it's the tributes from 10 and 2, and the boy from 8."

"In all of my years as both a tribute and a mentor I have never heard of anything like that" Will's expression proves exactly how shocked he is, and even though his voice is filled with surprise and shock, his expression shows so much more. "Almost every year, it's one and two, and then sometimes three and four. Once in a while there will be an odd district in there, but I've never heard of both in a district like 10, unless, and they're just a tool… well then, Mercedes and Blaine, you need to watch your backs. It looks like anyone could be a Career this year."

"It's not just that Schue, the boy from 2 and the boy from 10 seemed like the leaders of the group" Will's words worry me; is there anyone I can trust this year? Right now, it seems like Mercedes is the only trustable one. I hope that there is something, or really ANYTHING that can help me out with this without joining the Careers. What am I going to do about Kurt? I trust him so much right now, and I won't deny to myself that I have a huge crush on him right now. What if he is actually joined with the Careers, and today was just an act?

"Well, that's bad" Will paces the floor, and my fears are conformed. "So be on your guard with everyone. Do either of you know anyone who could potentially join the Careers? Anyone that you don't think will at all?"

"I feel like the girl from 1 will join, and possibly the tributes from 5" I find a piece of scrap paper floating around and Emma; who'd already figured out what I was doing gives me her pencil. I make three columns and name them. One is for the possible (and already) Careers. The middle is for people we aren't sure about, and the last one is for people that in no way would ever join the Careers unless it was life or death. Maybe not even that. "Just tell me who you think; we should keep track of this on paper instead of in our minds."

Emma comes up to us, and the four of us organize all of our fellow tributes into the three categories. Will shares what he saw for the reapings since he remembers them more than the rest of us, and any other details he can remember. Emma tells us all of the gossip we heard the past couple of days. I end up getting another piece of paper to mark down everything I hear about each of the fellow tributes. Mercedes and I rack our brains to remember anything we had noticed about every tribute. For a reason I think I know, Mercedes barely hides a flush at the mention of the boy from district 4, and she defends him if we ever say anything bad about him. I eventually put him in the category that contains the people that we don't know about, but not because of his personality or actions, but because I'm almost positive that Mercedes has a huge crush on him. We aren't doing ordering the tributes in their district order, but instead by anyone we can think of. I make a fourth column for the actual Careers, and Mercedes helps me out with the writing. Some people like the girl from 12 get put in a column right away while others like the girl from 4 take longer to decide. We move to my room to gain a bit more privacy.

Soon Kurt comes up, and Mercedes gives me a very knowing look. I silently reply by glaring at her until Will looks at us. We both glance back at the floor; unwilling to share the information we know about him.

"He's from 1, so there's a good chance he can become a Career, but at the rate this year's going, I'm scared to judge anyone for being or not being a Career" Will's remark gets a smile out of both of us even though I'm not that sure if he meant that to be a joke or not. "He doesn't look that intimidating, but I'm not sure. Emma?"

"From what I've heard, he's not really that much of a favorite to win" At the rate she's been going about the other tributes, I wouldn't be too surprised now if she pulled out a personal computer or something and searched every tribute up. "People say that he is known in 1 for his fashion skill. Personally, I think he's one of those tributes from 1 that have been too pampered in his life to have a chance at winning."

Mercedes and I glance at each other at these words. I refuse on my own pride and experiences to tell Will and Emma about Kurt. Mercedes tilts her head to indicate that it's my choice if we should tell or not. I give a tiny shake to tell her that we shouldn't tell at all. I then notice that Will and Emma are staring at us. We both blush and look away.

"Is there anything either of you know about Kurt that would be helpful?" Will attempts to break the tension between the four of us, but only happens to make more. Mercedes and I look into each other's eyes as we try desperately to figure out something to say; anything but the truth.

"Not that much, but he's an expert when it comes to fighting with swords" I offer weakly. Will nods and motions for me to put that down on the paper. I shakily attempt to write. I don't think Will believes me; or really us when we say that we don't know much. He knows were hiding something and I don't want him to find out.

"Okay, that's good to know, anything else?" Will just stares at us while the two of us try not to squirm or let any type of blush enter our cheeks. We both give a small shake to indicate that we don't. Will sighs and thankfully looks down.

"Okay, let's put him on the list that we don't know much about, and please tell me if you find out anything else" Will moves on, giving me a chance to let out a quick breath of relief I tune out the conversation for a couple seconds, trying to calm down from the fact that I almost had to tell Kurt's secret, and I'm sure I wouldn't be able to hide from Will that I have a crush if that happens. I come back into focus when Mercedes snaps her hand right in front of my eyes. I scoot back, startled.

"Blaine, are you tired?" Emma asks. Thank you Emma, I might be able to get out of this.

"Yea, I think I'm going off to bed now" I fake a huge yawn. Mercedes murmurs her agreement and heads out with me. She motions that we need to talk. I nod and begin walking toward my room. She follows me and shuts the door behind her when we both get inside. We sit next to each other, just like how we always do when we talk… before we were picked. Everything was so much easier in 11. Even though the Peacekeepers are harsh, and food is rare, I was somewhat safe. I had my family, my friends, and there are no barriers in between love there.

"You like him, don't you?" Mercedes is being her typical self; she is right to the point. I groan and put my head in my arms. She takes that as a yes and both smiles and sighs at the same time.

"You like the boy from four though" I retort, sounding a bit harsher than I meant to. I clear my throat and continue. "I've seen how you look at him; you're kind of obvious sometimes. Not that I really should be saying anything I guess…" My voice trails off… we both sigh.

"Wow… our luck" Mercedes says, breaking the silence growing between us. "We came here to either die or kill, and we both fall in love. I don't think we're the only ones too… what's going to happen now? There's no way I can kill Sam, same with you with Kurt. Don't even try to deny it, you know it's true." Mercedes is definitely an expert when it comes to people and crushes. I wish I was that good at figuring people out. I also just learned the District 4 boy's name. "What are we going to do now?"

"We're going to enjoy our last few days in the Capitol. We will keep a watch on ourselves, and on everyone. We will help each other out the best we can. If our crushes want to ally up, or talk to us, we will. If they ever say that they love us, then we will tell and enjoy each other the best we can. There is nothing we can do about this. Even if we don't have that big of a chance at winning, lets enjoy these days the best we can." I feel like I'm giving a dramatic speech by saying all of that. Mercedes seems to brighten up at my words though. I feel better too, like I had just given myself a big pep talk too.

"Let's make a deal with each other though, we help each other out through this no matter what" Mercedes holds her hand out. We shake, and burst out laughing because were in the Hunger Games… deals are like something you don't do. To be fair, you don't fall for people too.

"Well… goodnight Blaine" Mercedes moves to the door. She is almost out of the door when I answer.

"Goodnight Mercedes"

**Thank you to anyone who's still reading this! I meant to have the private session in this chapter, but that didn't happen of course. **

**If anyone wants me to put the list of where each tribute is, I can post it up. For now, it will be hidden. I might post it up later.**

**Please, PLEASE review!**


	8. Chapter 8 part 1

I'm SO sorry for not updating. I'm so bad at updating; I guess doing things on time isn't my thing. This chapter never was at a good place to stop, so bright side, it's really long.

**Little note, Blaine will both sing and think (or I guess talk silently?) to himself in **_**italics. **_**The way to tell if he's singing or thinking will be where the words are. If they start in the center, he is singing. If they start on the left, the words are thoughts.**

**Disclaimer again: I still don't own Glee or the Hunger Games. **

**Blaine's POV**

I wake up at 8:30, trembling. It's another nightmare. It's the old one I usually have about when I was attacked in 11, except with one new detail. Kurt is there too, and he's laughing as I laid on the floor, trembling. Kurt turned into the meerkat Sebastian, and his face loomed over me. I just woke up as Sebastian was preparing to join in the torture.

_That's just another dream Anderson. _I'm trying not to panic; silently talking to myself. _Kurt would never do that to you, and you will be able to fight back this time. You will have weapons, and you know how to fight back now. _I feel a bit calmer now, so I force myself to get up and I go into the bathroom to shower. In my exhausted form, I don't notice when I lean onto a clump of buttons until I get attacked with different brushes, and soap streams from a hidden tab in the ceiling. I shake myself and press the warm water button. Bright side, I'm definitely awake now at least. I turn off the shower and put on the clothes I was left. It's the same as yesterday, so I'm very happy with it. Yesterday's outfit was great for doing the different activities. I'm able to achieve this in less than half an hour. By 9 AM I'm heading to the table for breakfast, and I'm feeling a lot better than before. Emma and Will smile at me, and I'm able to smile back. My nightmare is nothing more than a memory now; I refuse to let myself dwell on it.

"Good morning!" I say happily, sitting down to eat. I pile my plate with as much food as possible. I want to gain as much weight as I can in the next couple of days because I'm going to need it. Will, Emma, and I exchange polite conversation. After my first cup of the warm, brown, chocolate drink Mercedes comes down. She smiles when she sees the three of us sitting and joins us. We all talk about little things like the Capitol, the food, and plenty of other things. 30 minutes till 10, talk becomes more serious.

"Mercedes, Blaine, if you find out anything about ANY of the tributes, please tell me" Will looks both of us straight in the eye as we both nod quickly. He leans back in his chair, a bit relieved.

"Umm… what should I do about the Careers?" I ask.

"Well, do you want to join them?" Will is quick to ask this.

"Well no, but…" I start.

"Then say you don't want to join" Will doesn't even let me finish. Once he hears me saying no, he is quick to the punch. "If you continue to not answer, they will become very pissed off at you, and you don't want that at all. Saying yes will force you to do so, it's either you join or die if you say yes. Saying no is the safest way to handle things. It's a bad situation to be in anyways, but that's the best you can do. Just wondering, why?"

"I don't trust some of the Careers" that's all I want to say. I don't want to tell him about my mistrust of Sebastian, the cruelness of Dave and Santana, and the character of Puck. I really don't want to even get close to that topic because that would be getting close to Kurt's story.

"Look at the time! We need to go" without waiting for us to answer, we are picked up and pushed out of the door by Emma. I always seem to be saved by her perfect timing.

We head down to the training center, and I lose myself in the movement. I also talked to the other tributes, to try to learn about them. I do all I can to avoid the Careers, but they eventually come up to me at lunch. I give tell them that I'm not going to join. Most of them just shrug it off, and they just repeatedly tell me that it's my loss that I'm not joining them. Sebastian looks mad though. Not just at me, he looks like his plan has been ruined. This really scares me, but there isn't anything I can do. I do however; make a quick mental note to tell Will about this. Then I go off to get some food before the second half of training today. I continue to learn all that I can, but now I'm avoiding the punching bags. There's no need to make myself the center of attention… again. The only things I want to do right now are collapse on my bed and forget about the Games, but I force myself to continue to talk to the other tributes while practicing. I make sure to find time to learn about Sam, and I find out that he isn't so bad. His family is very poor, so he takes care of his siblings. He really wants to win, but he won't do absolutely anything to win. He wants to be as sane as he can be if he comes home. I decide to like him after he says that. I'm just like him; I would rather die than win, but come home completely. I also notice however, that his face lights up when Mercedes shows up. Maybe love is in the air for the two of them, even if this will lead them to trouble. I can't bring myself to even think that I should try to end their love before it hurts them. I forget everything and go to sleep.

The next morning, I wake up a bit scared. Today is the private sessions. I will have to show the Gamemakers what I can do, and hope that they will give me a good score. I need the sponsors, and I will be in so much trouble without them. There have been a couple years when survival was based on what sponsors send the tributes; tributes have died because they didn't have sponsors. I head to breakfast, but I can barely eat. Mercedes; who is next to me, isn't much better. Will and Emma pressure us to eat, but it's kind of like eating sandpaper. My fears are taking over me.

"You both know what you're doing right?" Will decides to break our silence with the question. We both nod and look at each other in fear.

"I have a plan" I say with confidence. I'm not lying; I do have a plan, I'm not sure it's going to work though.

"Same here Schue, I just hope that this will please the judges. Since we're from 11, I'm not sure how well this will work." Mercedes has a hopeful look on her face. I wish I felt this confident on the inside.

"Remember, both of you. Just try as hard as you can, and you will be fine. Unleash your skills, and they will love you." Will grins at the two of us. "Now, you two will go downstairs and wait for a little while. Blaine, you will go first, then Mercedes. Don't freak out, keep a calm head. Imagine you're doing this for your best friend. Now, go on downstairs." We clutch onto each other's hands as we walk to the elevator that will take us to where we need to. When we finally let go, both of our hands have almost turned white. I don't mind or care, we both needed something to hold on to. When we get there, almost everyone is there. Tension fills the air as we all wait to be called. There's isn't a sound as Mercedes and I find an empty bench and sit down. I join the silence and lose myself in my thoughts.

What feels like years later, a bell rings to tell us that the private sessions are about to begin. I jump and look around. Some faces are scared, some are excited. I personally just want to get it over with. Why can't they do the districts in opposite order, like 12 first? Then I would only have to wait for a little while. I sit back down and lay my head in my hands.

"Good luck Blaine" I look up to find Kurt looking at me. I nod and try to force myself to say something. After a few failed attempts I finally get something out.

"Same with you Kurt. I hope you get a good score." I then realize what I forgot to do last night. "Oh crap, I'm sorry about last night I…"

"Oh, you didn't come; thank goodness! I couldn't meet up anyways; Beiste was very controlling of us." Kurt interrupts me before I can even finish. It's like he knew exactly what I was going to say. "I'm actually happy you didn't come, it makes things a lot smoother between us. Now I don't have to worry that I ignored you… and same goes to you."

"Well… that makes things a lot easier" Kurt nods in agreement. We both look up as a Capitol attendant taps Kurt on the shoulder and points toward the doors. I wave in farewell and step back as the attendant leads Kurt to the doors.

I go back to the bench and wait in agony. Bit by bit, the room clears out until it's just the tributes from 10 and 12 that are with Mercedes and me. Nobody returns when they are done. I don't move much, I just notice that Sebastian is staring at me a lot. He continues to move closer to me, and it's kind of freaking me out. What does he want from me? After a little while, I just ignore him and just stare at a wall. After a little while, the girl from 12 goes up to him.

"Just wondering, are you a dolphin?" I can hear everything she says since their so close to me. Her voice clearly portrays the innocence inside of her, but her words make no sense. Why would he be a dolphin? If he was anything; it would be a meerkat. Or maybe a chipmunk.

"Excuse me for asking, but what?" Sebastian sounds as confused as I feel.

"A dolphin is a gay shark" she says sounding rather important. I'm still really confused, and I guess my face shows it. The boy from 12 comes up to me.

"She's asking the boy if he's gay. I'm Joe by the way; Joe Hart." He holds his hand out. I shake it.

"Thanks for explaining, that makes a lot more sense." I say.

"Yea, some of the things that Brittany says confuses everyone, but since I lived near her, I learned what she meant by some things. I really wish she hadn't been picked." Joe looks like he's going to cry.

"Truly, I wish none of us had been picked" he nods in agreement. "I wonder what Sebastian said to Brittany."

"By the looks of it, he still hasn't figured out what she means." I break out laughing, and everyone looks at me strangely. Mercedes, who's been sleeping for a while now, wakes up and looks at me. I cover my mouth and sit down; embarrassed.

"Should I explain to him?" Joe asks.

"Yea… you probably should. It's just so funny though if you look at his face!" Joe looks relieved and goes up to Sebastian. Joe whispers something into Sebastian's ear, and his face clears of all confusion. He whispers something else in Joe's ear, and Joe comes back to the spot next to me.

"Someone better explain to me what's happening!" Mercedes is so confused at what's happening.

"I'll tell you later; I want to hear what Sebastian is going to say" I scoot a little bit closer to hear.

"Yes… I guess I'm a dolphin, Brittany." Sebastian says with forced patience. She grins and leaves him alone. It's a good thing she does though; I was wondering how long it would take before he would crack. Brittany smiles and comes up to Joe and me.

"Hi!" She seems very friendly given the fact that we were all enemies. "I'm Brittany, who are you?"

"Hi Brittany, I'm Blaine." She seems so sweet; it's horrible that she's in the games. Joe, me and Brittany chat for a bit as district 10 is called. Mercedes soon joins us. The four of us become friends as we wait for our turn. In what feels like seconds; I'm called. The three of them wish me good luck (well, Joe and Mercedes wishes me good luck. Brittany didn't understand what I was doing exactly), and I went in.

The Gamemakers are sitting in a room above us with a glass frame covering the huge hole in the room that makes it possible to see the training area. I look around for something I can do that would work. Quick as a bird, I run over to a punching bag and unhook it from the circle. I take off the chain and grab some rope from the knot tying station. I sprint to a new circle with the rope and punching bag. I find the old chain hole in the punching bag and I string it with the now hanging rope. I tie multiple, strong knots that can hold anything.

I now take the remaining rope and thread it through the circle. I do a series of quick, yet effective knots. The little bit of rope left is looped through and around the metal circle.

I take a couple light swings to make sure that the punching bag will stay on. When it barely even moves, I begin to whack it as hard as I can. With every couple of punches I would snap a fast side kick that sent the punching bag spinning like a piñata on its rope. Thankfully though, the rope never broke, and the knots stayed together. After a little while, I stop, grab a knife, and throw it at the bag. I end up hitting the weak part in the rope; sending the punching bag crashing down. All of the Gamemakers were watching me in awe; making me feel excited. Hopefully my mistake with the knife (that actually made me look better) would help me achieve a better score.

"You may go now" one of the Gamemakers from above said to me. I leave without a word; hoping I got a good enough score. I wait in another room until I hear the door open. Mercedes steps in with a scared look on her face.

"How'd it go?" I ask as we head back up to our floor.

"Horrible, while the fire lit up, it's not very exciting to watch someone make a fire. Honestly; I'm going to get a low score. What about you?"

"I think I did okay." Personally, I think I did, but I don't know for sure. For all I know, I could get a really low score, and have nobody sponsor me. "I got a really lucky hit with a knife, so now I'm just hoping for the best."

"Me too" Mercedes said. "We really should get back to our floor before Schue freaks out." We begin to hurry to the elevator. We make it in about five minutes, and everyone is already waiting at the elevator. I didn't think we had taken that long, but Emma is wiping off everything with a wet towel, Will is pacing the floor, and both stylists are in a deep discussion. We both look at each other and prepare ourselves for either thousands of questions, or a rant about being punctual. Maybe even both. They were so worried that nobody noticed we had arrived. I clear my throat. Emma shrieks and drops her towel while everyone else jumps.

"How did your private sessions go?" Will was the first to recover from the surprise.

"I think it went well for me" I said. "They were staring at me when I finished. I hope that is a good thing. I'm just hoping now. I mean, nobody boxes people to death."

"I did horrible." Mercedes looked depressed at this. "Making fires and cooking is the LEAST interesting thing ever. The Gamemakers want blood and fighting, not cooking. They're going to give me a really low score, and I won't have a chance at winning! I..."

"Calm down Mercedes!" I almost scream at her. She blushes and stops.

"Don't worry Mercedes, the audience won't care about low or medium scores" Will says. "They only care about the really high ones, and the people with the higher scores sometimes get targeted by the other members. Don't worry; we'll worry about that once we get your scores. Speaking of that, why don't you guys relax for a bit? There's no need to stress about it. That goes for ALL of us." Will turns to Emma at the last line, which is good. She nods and begins to clean. Mercedes says something about going to her room as Shelby and Holly head to the room their using for designing clothes.

"I'm going up to the roof" I say.

"Okay, be back before dinner!" he calls after me.

As I go up the back staircase I found, I begin to wonder if Kurt will be up there. We haven't been able to talk that much, although I might have avoided him on purpose a bit. I've already fallen pretty hard for him, I don't want to hit rock bottom. I don't even know if he likes me back, let alone the fact I'm in the freaking Hunger Games!

After about fifteen minutes of walking, I arrive at the rooftop. I move closer to the door, but jerk away as sobs fill the air. Carefully, I move back towards the door, and let myself in.

I don't have to look very hard to find the source of the sobbing. While the sound circles the room, it's loudest near the garden. I don't want to intrude, but curiosity gets the best of me. I sprint across the room, but I take care to not be loud.

I knock on the barrier surrounding the garden.

"You can come in. I doubt you wouldn't anyways. A falsely confident voice snaps the silence in half. I realize in horror that the voice sounds a lot like Kurt.

"Hey, what happened?" I ask. Kurt is sitting on one of the wooden benches, his head resting in his hands. He looks up in surprise at my words. I think he thought I was someone like Karofsky. I resist the urge to run to him and whisper that everything's alright. Instead, I force myself to walk to the bench and sit down. Kurt goes back to sobbing when I do.

"T…t…the bullies…they said all of these things to me…" Kurt is having so much trouble talking, so I scoot closer and put one of my arms around him. He leans into me, so I think I'm doing the right thing. "Th…they said how ugly I was, and that I didn't stand a chance in the Games, and I should just kill myself right now. I'm a freak Blaine."

My heart breaks in two hearing this. I really hate bullies, but this is just horrible. I always thought my bullies were the worst, but this is ten times worse. Nobody deserves this; Kurt is such a caring, kind person.

"Kurt, listen to me." I say. "Have courage. These people are bullying you because they're afraid. They know your better than them, and they want to seem better. Stand up to them; show them that you're the stronger one. Just remember, courage."

"How can I believe that when I've been told I'm a freak everywhere? The only place I was told I was loved was at home, and with my few friends." Kurt looks so broken.

"Because you know how strong you are. I can easily pick out 5 or 6 people who want to get to know you, and everyone is so scared that you are going to win." I know what I need to do.

_Every day is so wonderful_

_And suddenly, it's hard to breathe_

_Now and then, you get insecure_

_From all the pain, you feel so ashamed_

_You are beautiful, no matter what they say_

_Words can't bring you down_

_You are beautiful, in every single way_

_Yes, words can't bring us down, oh no_

_So they don't bring us down today_

"That is amazing Blaine." Kurt says. He wipes his tears on his shirt and stands up. "How are you so confident, so perfect?"

"I'm not always confident, and I'm not perfect. I just don't let people bring me down. Personally, you're more perfect cause no matter what, you're still going strong everywhere. I didn't stick up for myself Kurt… I ran. I don't want you to make the same mistakes I did. You are so much better than I am."

We are so in sync with one another that we lean in to each other at the same time and begin to kiss. The kiss is perfect; Kurt's lips are soft and sweet, and in my opinion… perfect. The kiss is passionate and long enough to please me. It is by far the best kiss I've ever had. Not that I've had many.

"Wow…" Kurt says after a few minutes of catching our breath. "You are a really good kisser! Is there anything you can't do?"

"Yes. That was the best kiss I've ever had." I feel so happy right now. I don't even care that I shouldn't be doing this. I don't care that this will eventually hurt me. I'm just thinking about the boy in front of me.

"Can we kiss again?" Kurt asks.

"You only had to ask" I say and lean in for another kiss. We continue to kiss for about 10 minutes until I look up at the antique clock on the wall. The scores usually came on at 8 sharp and its 7:50.

"Kurt, we have to go watch the scores. I'll try to come back tonight. Remember, have courage." I say.

"Bye Blaine, good luck!" Kurt says. With that I head back to my staircase and begin the walk to the 11th floor. I find myself humming Status Quo to myself.

_No matter what happens now, at least you got something good out of your time here at the Capitol. _I think to myself. I arrive at the door to the 11th floor. I take a deep breath and step inside.

**That was definitely the longest chapter I've ever written (3840 words!). I was going to originally put the scores in too, but it became way too long, so the second half of this chapter will be posted the next time I can. I hope you like it. Thanks to FerbulousGleek for betaing this chapter. **

**Please review!**


	9. Chapter 8 part 2

**Here's part two of Chapter 8. I hope you like it!**

**While writing this chapter; my backspace button started messing up. It goes from working to breaking. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I'm getting a new computer in a year, but for now it's going to be messed up and I can't do anything about it (except apparently smack the backspace button… I don't get my computer sometimes).**

**Before this, I've been trying to hold off on any curse words (I mean any). That's going to change very soon. When I say soon I mean now. I just to warn everyone in case someone don't like them.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Hunger Games or Glee. They all belong to Suzanne Collins/RIB and Fox.**

**Blaine's POV:**

Damn, nobody's there. I'm not that surprised; I'm in a back hallway, but I wonder where everyone is. All of the rooms have televisions, so they could be anywhere… wait a minute. They would probably be in the living room since the television in there is huge!

I pretty much sprint to the living room to find that I was correct. Mercedes, Emma, Shelby, and Holly are already inside. As I slip inside, Will rushes in after me; his face taut with worry, but relaxes once he sees me. I feel a little bit guilty, but at least I made it on time. If I survive this, I'm going to find out how to make a watch. It could be REALLY helpful.

"Blaine! Thank goodness you arrived!" Will exclaims, "I was worried that you would miss the beginning!"

"Speaking of which, we're going to miss it if we don't turn the TV on!" Emma is already clicking on the Power button on the TV. I flop onto the couch next to Mercedes and turn to face the television.

Kurt starts off the show. His perfect face fills the screen as a nine pops up. I hold back a squeal of delight and resort to almost tearing the pillow that I'm holding. At least he did well. Unlike Kurt, Sugar only scores a four.

Karofsky is next with a scowl on his face for the picture. He scored a nine. Same goes for Santana. By now my brain is trying to process this, causing me to miss all of 3, and the boy from 4. The girl surprisingly did pretty well with a seven. 5 have both a somewhat high and an all-time low with their scores while 6's scores are very low, like some of the worst overall. 7 are mediocre with fives and sixes. The boy from 8 ends up with an eight while the girl gets a five. 9's scores are crap, with the girl getting a two.

Sebastian's face pops up on the screen now. I almost want to look away, but I force myself to watch. He ends up getting a nine, along with his district partner Harmony. I'm very impressed and scared now. I guess he is better than I thought. Mercedes has to almost smack me to get me out of my head. 11 is about to come on.

I'm first. The room is silent with anticipation. I'm terrified, and I'm gripping the pillow so hard my knuckles are white. My face comes up on the screen. We all lean in to see the score.

A ten comes up! Mercedes screams so hard I'm pretty sure it was heard throughout the entire building. Everyone comes over to form a group hug around me. Shelby whispers in my ear that she knew that I could do it. I can barely even move, let alone speak. I got a freaking ten! This will definitely help me survive in the Games. For the first time since I've been picked, I feel my old friend named confidence start to come back. Maybe I might be able to have a chance. Maybe the other competitors might target me, but I have a better chance.

We sit back down for Mercedes' score. A seven comes up. Whatever she did must have impressed the Gamemakers because they haven't been very friendly today. We all begin a group cheer for her, and then Will makes us form a circle.

"Cheers for Mercedes and Blaine for the spectacular scores!" Will says as put his hand in the middle of the circle. We all join him and lift our hands up with a big cheer of, "Amazing!". We sit back down to catch 12. Joe does okay while Brittany gets the lowest score out of all of the tributes; a one.

"Well, it's another busy day tomorrow!" Emma begins to shoo us off into the hallway. I turn back to the doorway that leads to the stairs. I begin the climb up to the roof.

I find myself alone when I arrive. Kurt must still be talking with his mentor. He said that she was kind of harsh, but I guess that could help him. Well, there isn't much that I can do except to wait. Actually… getting my guitar would be a really good idea. I run back down the stairs and zip into my room to fetch my guitar. I make it back in a few minutes and I begin to tune it and warm up.

"Wow… you're really good." I stop my playing to find the source of the talking. It's Kurt. He's sitting on a bench just watching. "Did you play in 11?"

"I played around the house. I also know piano too, and sometimes I would write songs. Not to mention I was the lead singer for my school's glee club, the Warblers." I didn't want to sound stuck up or arrogant, but it was true.

"You sang lead for the Warblers?" Kurt almost sounded like he didn't believe it. When I nod he squeals. "Oh my gosh; I heard about them from 1. Apparently they are the best acapella group in Panem! Everyone in my glee club loves you guys!"

"Wow… I only knew people in 11 like us; I didn't know that the entire country knew about us, let alone love us" I suddenly see a way to gain more sponsors. "What glee club are you from?"

"I'm in the New Directions. I'm a countertenor." Kurt says.

"Wow, I've heard of the New Directions. I heard they are one of the best Show Choir groups in District 1. The only group they've lost too is another group called Vocal Adrenaline. You guys are pretty popular in 11. I don't know about other districts." Truthfully, the main reason that the New Directions are so popular is the fact that they take anyone in. When all of us in the Warblers heard about them through the Show Choir convention, we immediately began to attempt to learn more about them. When we found out how unique they were, we began to spread around the word. While we couldn't listen to their music, we did find out quite a lot about them. Like how they accepted anyone in no matter what social status and their personality. You just had to love singing. We ended up spreading the word about the New Directions throughout 11. Soon everyone was talking about them. We nicknamed them the Melting Pot. Eventually we got our hands on their cover of "The Hanging Tree", a popular song in 12. "Well, we've only heard one of your songs. We all love how accepting you guys are."

"Well, it was like my second home. I mean, my father was great, but everyone in the New Directions were… I mean are so accepting of everyone. It's amazing." Kurt has a wistful look on his face while saying this. My heart almost breaks in half listening to him say that. Who knows if he'll survive the games, and he has such good friends. I make a mental promise to myself to try to help Kurt win in any way I can.

"Wow… that sounds amazing. The Warblers are like my family too; actually they are my true family in my opinion. They gave me my token." I never meant to be this open, but you know, if I'm planning on dying, I might as well tell someone my story.

"It's so sad that one of us will never get to sing again… it's just horrible! I hate this! You don't deserve to die, hell, nobody deserves to die! Even people like Karofsky and Santana. I wish we could do something about this!" Kurt is ranting about the unfairness of this hellhole were in. Even though this could be dangerous, I don't stop him. If only we could do something. Wait a second… I have an idea for a little bit more fun

"Maybe we can't do anything about the actual Games… but we can have a little fun before they start." I say. "There has got to be at least a few more people in glee clubs here, maybe we could have a sing off before the Game starts!"

"How could we do a sing off?" Kurt asks me. "Two, maybe three people aren't enough to pull it off. I doubt many people will want to do this with their sworn enemies."

"Maybe they will, maybe they won't. I already know that the tributes from 12 are really nice, and maybe more are too. Just as a way to have fun one more time before the Game actually starts. We can ask around, invite who we want too. We don't have to invite any of the Careers, but just people we think will be nice. We can meet anywhere we think will work… and think about it Kurt! We could have a campfire maybe, someone could bring food. We could do anything! Even if they catch us, what can they do? They've already promised to make our lives a living hell, and they can't kill us now! What do you think Kurt?" Wow… I guess I can make speeches on the spot. I should've believed every time someone from the Warblers said I could.

"I guess there's no harm in trying" I almost let out a cheer, but I was able to stay composed. "Do you have any paper? We can write down whom to ask."

"Here, I should have a spare in my pocket" I dig around to find a clean sheet of paper and a pencil without an eraser. I continue to dig around to find a quill. I blush and stuff it back in my pocket

"Why do you have a quill with you?" Kurt asks.

"Because, I've always wanted to try out writing with a quill and ink, and they have everything here… so I stole one along with some ink to try it out. Let me say it DID NOT work."

"That sounds so dorky, but adorable. You're adorable." Kurt walks up and kisses me. I return the kiss and we continue until the urge to breathe is impossible to ignore. We pull away to catch our breath.

"Wow… that was just… wow" Kurt doesn't have any words… that's a first.

"Come on, we should finish the list" we both pore over the blank sheet of paper and think. Kurt starts off by adding our names. I add in Mercedes, Brittany and Joe. Kurt continues with Finn, Artie, Tina, and Kaleen. Lauren, Becky, and Mike are next. I cross out Becky since I overheard she is planning on joining the Careers soon and add in Sam and Quinn. Kurt steals the pencil from me to write Rory and Sunshine. We look at it and nod.

"Well, that's it" Kurt says.

"Not yet" I say mischievously. I walk over and steal the pencil from him. "Now we're even."

"Hey! Give the pencil back!" Kurt begins to run to me. I sprint to the edge of the garden and wave the pencil teasingly over my head.

"Come and get it!"

"Oh I will" Kurt says and shoots right to me. I leap away like a bullfighter that I was taught about in school. He turns around and lunges straight to me. I'm unable to jump in time so I duck. The pencil is wrenched from my hand.

"Kuuuurt! I want the pencil back!" I pout. Hesitant, he looks right at me, debating. The pause is all I need to jump and grab the pencil away again. "Gotcha!"

"Oh come on Blaine!" Kurt says and continues to chase me. We continue running around to get the pencil until we have no more air left and we fall down; gasping.

"Wow… that was fun" Kurt says. "But we really should go. Do you want to ask people from districts 7 and up while I ask 3-6?"

"Sure! I'll see you tomorrow if possible!" I say.

"Same time as today?" Kurt asks.

"That sounds perfect" I say. "See you tomorrow!"

"Can you bring your guitar tomorrow, I want to hear some of your music" Kurt says.

"I promise" I say. With that I head off back to the 11th floor. When I get in my room, I don't sleep. I just play; a new song already beginning to form in my head.

**And YAY! It finally finished. This meant to be a short chapter that had was supposed to end a LONG time ago (like it was supposed to be finished quickly), but I didn't want that. So it became much longer than before. By the end I almost had no control over this chapter. Oh well, hope you like it! **

** A BIG thanks to fire-phoenix-flying for being my beta and brother. Best brother/ best friend/beta ever!**_**(fire-phoenix-flying here! Not much to edit here, so I'm gonna be annoying and invade your AN, Coop! HAHA!) **_

** My school is starting in two weeks which means writing is going to be even harder than it already is. I'll have the first week of school without dance, but there will be homework. After that I'll have VERY LITTLE TIME. I'll try to write as much as I can before school starts. **

** Also, a big thanks to everyone who's been with this story since the beginning, **_**(ME!)**_** and thanks to anyone who's favorited/ followed/ just read in general. THANK YOU! **

** Please review!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Hey, big thanks to everyone that are still reading this story! I just wanted to warn you that the backspace button is still being stupid.**

**Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own Glee or Hunger Games blah blah blah…**

** Blaine's POV**

I wake up feeling surprisingly refreshed. This is the first night in a long time that I actually had a solid sleep. No nightmares and no rolling around attempting to sleep. Wow… I haven't experienced a night like that since the Sadie Hawkins dance. I thought I would have complete nightmares because of the Games but nope. It's like my subconscious wants to give me a break. Well, if you can hear me subconscious; thank you.

_Well, I guess I should enjoy these nights the best I can. _ I think. _I doubt I'm going to get any sleep once the Games start. Speaking of the Games, I should probably get up._

I'm kind of lazy though. I order a couple pieces of toast through the menu and lie on my bed eating. I know I should get up and join everyone for breakfast, but I don't want to. I just want to lie here and do nothing. Finally, I become bored of that and I actually get up and eat another piece of toast. I'm going to need to put on as much weight as I can to have a chance to be able to help Kurt win. I find that I'm allowed to wear whatever I want today. I choose red pants, a white belt, and a black shirt. I look in the mirror and decide something's missing. I look back into the closet to see some accessories. I find a red, white, black, and grey bowtie in there. That's perfect. I tie the bowtie around my neck and grin. Now I should go over to breakfast… and I need to tell Mercedes about the sing-off.

"Wow, you look nice!" Mercedes says as I walk into the dining area.  
"Thanks!" I say.

"So, you both agree to train together?" Will asks

"Yep Mr. Schue" Mercedes says. "We do almost everything together."

"Okay then. In fifteen minutes meet in the main room" he says.

"Okay!" we both say at the same time. We look at each other and laugh. Emma and Will leave to go back to their own rooms. We're alone.

"Hey Mercedes, Kurt and I want to have a sing off tonight. Do you want to join?" I ask quickly. We only have fifteen… now fourteen minutes until we HAVE to be with Will.

"Sure! It would be nice to sing one more time with you before the games start" she grins at me. "Where will the sing off be?"

"It's going to be in the abandoned room underneath the training center. I'll show you tonight." I say. I had gone exploring a few days ago and that's how I found the staircase, and the abandoned level.

"I can't wait!" Mercedes says. "Now we really should get going to the main room before Schue kills us. I would rather be early than late" We both almost run there for safety's sake`, and we end up being a few minutes early. We play a game of hangman until Will lets us in. There are three chairs set up in a triangle. Mercedes and I both sit and wait for Will to start.

"Okay, so you both know that the interview is a big help for gaining sponsors," We both nod. "It's all about how you portray yourself to the audience. They want to know all about you, and you want to be someone. It could be winning; arrogant, humble… you name it. Also, they will ask questions about your life. Be prepared for that; I don't want you to be surprised tomorrow." Will takes a deep breath and continues.

"Okay, what I'm going to do is pretend to interview both of you. The first time we do this I want you to be yourself. We'll go from there. Mercedes, you'll go first."

They start off while I watch. Mercedes goes straight to her 'diva' mode, which is perfect. She answers Will's questions with pure sass. I zone out for a couple until I hear an interesting question come up

"So, do you do any outside activities?" he asks

"Well, I'm in my school's girl glee club; the Troubletones. I'm the lead singer. We would sometimes compete with other Glee clubs in 11." Mercedes says in a proud voice. I admire Mercedes so much right now; she used to struggle with her confidence, and now she sounds so proud of herself. Will continues to ask questions, so I go back to zoning out. Finally, they finish.

"That was perfect, Mercedes!" Will says excitedly. "I think you're already set, just be yourself! Blaine, it's your turn."

"Okay." I say nervously. It's time to do this.

"So Blaine, how are you?" he starts off with something easy. I slap on my goofy face and get this going.

"I feel so energized about being here! The Capital is so different from my hometown! How are you?" I say enthusiastically.

"I'm doing well, thank you very much" Will says. "So, how is the Capital different from District 11?"

"Well, the food is spectacular for one, but also, the multi-buttoned showers are a treat." I say. "I mean, where can you have a better shower than here?" my sentence makes Will almost crack up, but he manages to stay calm.

"So, back in District 11, did you do any activities?" Will asks.

"Yes, I am the lead soloist for my school's glee club; the Warblers." I say. "I also boxed, which I'm hoping will help me out!" Will's face is full of shock; I'm baffled for a second until I remember Kurt talking about the Warblers.

"You are in the Warblers! They are the most famous glee club in Panem!" Will exclaims. "Not to mention you are the lead Soloist! Is there any song you all performed that was your favorite?

"Well, I'm going to say Teenage Dream, it was my first song that I lead the Warblers in, and it was so much fun. Also, Uptown Girl was a lot of fun to perform." I say cheerfully.

"I'm very impressed, so, do you have any siblings?" Will continues with another question. I hope we finish soon; I'm really bored of this.

"I have an older brother named Cooper. Even though he's much older than me, I still love him. We usually sing together whenever we can, and he helps me improve." I say it a little wistfully.

"Okay, well, both of you are set already! Mercedes, be sassy, and Blaine, just be goofy and excited. Kind of also humble too. Everyone already loves you, and this will make them head over heels for you! I guess you have an hour of free time if you want to walk around until Emma's class." We almost sprint out of there, finally!

"I'm going to guess you're going to ask other people about the sing-off?" Mercedes asks. I nod in agreement.

"Okay, I'll see you in Emma's class!" She says. I head downstairs; hoping to run into someone. Today's my lucky day because when I arrive at the lobby, Joe and Brittany are there. I wave at them and walk over.

"You two are free too." I say.

"Yep, thank goodness, so how are you?" Joe asks.

"I'm good, thanks. I just wanted to ask both of you a question." I say. "A few of us want to have a sing off tonight in the basement, and I was wondering if you want to join us?"

"I would love to join!" Brittany says excitedly. "I can't wait to be with fun people!"

"I'll come too. Do you mean the training room though?" Joe asks.

"No, if you go to the staircase and go all of the way down there's a level below the training center. It's like an abandoned storage room." I say.

"Okay, I can't wait!" Joe says. "Are there going to be instruments?"

"Yes, I'm bringing a guitar, and there's a piano down there already. If you want to bring another instrument, you can, but you're will have to carry it down there. I hate to do that, but it's the best way I can. Thanks for coming though!" I say.

"Who else is coming?" Joe asks.

"Right now, the boy from One, you two, and Mercedes and me. I'm inviting anyone that isn't a jerk." I say. Suddenly, we all hear this ding and the district 7 tributes walk out. "Speaking of inviting people, give me a second." I walk over to the district 7 tributes.

"Hey, do you two want to join a few of us in a sing-off tonight?" I ask.

"Um, aren't we enemies?" the boy asks.

"Yes, but this is something that we can just forget that we're here and have fun, do you want to join?" I ask again.

"Sure, I'll join." The girl says.

"I guess" the boy says.

"Fantastic! It will be in the basement, just go down the stairs on your floor. I can't wait to see you there!" I say excitedly. I look at the clock as they leave; I have 15 minutes left. I wave goodbye to the district 12 tributes and head back up the elevator. Mercedes is waiting for me when I get there.

"So did you get anyone else to come?" she asks.

"Yep, 12 and 7 are coming" I say.

"Yay, I can't wait!" she says. "We should head off to Emma's class now." We walk over to Emma's room to see that she's still getting ready. We continue our old game of hangman until Emma lets us in. We step over the threshold to gasp in surprise. Emma has turned her room into what looks like a mini remake center. There's a dress and a suit hung up on a hanger, and I notice a pair of dress shoes and high heels on a shoe rack. Oh great, this is going to take a while.

"Welcome to your etiquette class! We'll be working on how to behave for the interview. Mercedes and I exchange looks of horror; we both know we'll be here for hours. In 11, there's very little need for etiquette, so this will be completely new for us. I pat Mercedes on her shoulder in sympathy; it's going to be even harder for her than it will be for me. I don't have to deal with heels and dresses at least.

"Okay, why don't the two of you put on the clothes on the hangers and we can get started!" she says exuberantly. I hold off a groan and go into one of the two changing rooms to put on my suit and dress shoes. I have to say, they are really uncomfortable. I hope what I actually wear for the interview is better than this. It's also very hot.

"You look lovely!" Emma says. I bite back a retort and sit down on one of the three chairs and wait for Mercedes. She walks out in a beautiful, but long pink dress and matching heels. She wobbles over too her seat and plops down. In an instant, Emma is on her, criticizing how she walked and how she sat down. Emma then proceeds to show her and I lie back, already bored. Emma then swoops onto me, and says that I should show good posture. I bite my tongue to keep unpleasant thoughts that are in my head to stay there. Instead, I smile and watch her. I sit with the best posture I can until I think she isn't looking at me. I go back to slouching for a second, but she somehow catches me. After my first attempt of trying to get away with sitting comfortably, I give up and stay with my back straight, my head high, and an incredibly fake smile plastered to my face. At least I have experience with the smile. Mercedes seems to have come to the same conclusion I have, there is no chance of relaxing with this 'class'. I miss Will's class, it was much better than this one.

Finally, we finish how to sit properly in a chair and we move on to walking. I have a bit of trouble at first, but I'm able to finish so I'm able to go back to my chair. Course I still have to sit properly. Mercedes on the other hand, continues to trip and fall from either her dress or her shoes. I can't blame her; those shoes look painful and horrifying. After maybe a hundred tries, she finally walks down without stumbling, or lifting her dress up too high. I think this is all crap, but I keep silent in hopes of being able to finish before dinner. After that, there's how to talk and smiling. If we ever drop our smiles, she somehow notices and gives us a lecture that my father would be proud of. There's handshakes, how to enter the interview, just so many things to remember! Once she gets through everything, she makes us show her what we've done! It's a freaking nightmare, and I barely hold back a cheer when she says that we're done. Mercedes and I change back into our old clothes and sprint out of there. Mercedes and I run to her room and shut the door behind us so Emma doesn't hear our jubilant cheers of freedom that we let out.

"That was by far, the worst 'class' I've ever had in my life!" Mercedes says. "I mean, couldn't she let us off once that entire torture!"

"I wish, at least that's done now." I say. "I'm going to try to find everyone else I'm inviting and then I'm taking a long nap."

"Good idea, I'll see you at dinner!" she says.

I head back downstairs to the lobby. The district 9 tributes are talking on one of the benches there when I arrive. I walk over to them, and they look at me; surprised.

"Hey" I say.

"Hello, how are you?" the boy asks.

"I'm good. I was just wondering if you two want to join me and a few other people in a sing off tonight." I say.

"I would love to join! Where is it?" the girl asks.

"It's in the basement; you get there by going all the way down the stairs on your floor. There will be a guitar and a piano. I can't wait to see you there!" I say.

"I'll come too; it'll be nice to sing one more time." The boy says as I hold back a cheer. I hope Kurt is as successful as I am about asking people. I guess I'll find out later. I look at the time, it's about six PM. I head back upstairs and wake Mercedes up for dinner. We both walk to the dining room for dinner.

Mercedes and I are very subdued for dinner. We're both worn out from lessons, and we don't want to tell them that we're having a friendly sing-off with most of the tributes. As lenient as he is, I'm pretty sure he'll attempt to stop us about this.

"So do you two feel ready for the interview" Will attempts to break the silence.

"Yep" I say as Mercedes nods.

"Wow, are you two okay?" Emma asks.

"We're fine" Mercedes says. I attempt a grin.

"Are you sure? You both should get some sleep tonight." Will says as I hold back a true grin at this. Neither of us plans to get much sleep tonight.

"Well, when you finish your dinner I want both of you to go off to sleep, okay?" Will says. We both groan.

"Okay Mr. Schue." Mercedes says. We quickly eat and rush to our rooms. After a bit of hesitation, I decide to nap for an hour. I set the alarm for 7:30 and I drift off to sleep.

"Riiiing!" my alarm clock sings.

"Shut up!" I say and smack the top of it. Thankfully, the annoying ring stops and I actually look at the clock. Its 7:30, thank goodness I didn't sleep in. I grab my guitar and head off to Mercedes' room. She's sitting on the bed, looking bored. I gently knock on the door and she jumps… well, she really bounces. I grin and hold up my guitar.

"We're going? Thank goodness, I'm so bored. Let's go!" She says.

"Quiet! Will thinks we're sleeping." I whisper urgently. She nods and we tiptoe off to the staircase. I open the door slowly, and release a sigh of relief when it doesn't creak. I begin the journey down the old, rickety stairs; Mercedes right behind me. After what feels like hours, we arrive at the door that marks where the old storage room is.

"Wow that took forever! I think training was easier than that!" Mercedes exclaims.

"Well, we're done for now" I say.

"For now" Mercedes retorts.

"Well, we might as well go in" I say. With that I put my hand on the door, open it carefully, and step inside.

**Okay, so the next chapter will be the sing off, so it won't be much dialogue, and a lot of singing. I just wanted to say that. **

** Second off, if there's any songs you want a certain character to sing, please just message what song and who. The people who are definitely not coming are**

** Sugar**

** Karofsky**

** Harmony**

** Sebastian**

** The other Careers are maybes, but everyone else will be coming. If I don't hear anything, I'll pick myself. One way or another, everyone should have a song.**

** Here's a little test for anyone reading, which Glee episode did Blaine's outfit come from? If I hear the correct answer before I finish 10 (PM me or review the answer) I'll send you the song list. Right now only Blaine knows the song list **

** Please review!**


	11. Authors Note

**I've been debating on this for a while, and I decided to officially discontinue this story for a little while. I have absolutely no inspiration for this story, and I don't think I'll be getting any soon. I'm thinking of starting a Rise of the Guardians story... but until I try out that there's no chance of me continuing this. I'm so sorry for that, and I wish my brain was different and I could continue... but I'd also rather not give you anything and wait for the inspiration to come back instead of trying to continue and failing at it.**

**A big thank you to everyone who favorited, followed, or even read this story. I love all of you, and I hope to eventually restart this story. **


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